Bittersweet Memories, that is all I’m Taking with Me.
Ironhide Issue 1: Chapter 1: The Iron Age. May 12th 2010.
Recruiting ambitious idiots like this is why you’ll lose.
I’d actually forgotten that IDW’s next miniseries launched before Last Stand of the Wreckers had ended, going forward, the Costa run will generally have just the one accompanying series alongside it.
Doing a miniseries about Ironhide makes a degree of sense, not only is he one of the best remembered original characters, his namesake in the Movies had also just been one of the main Autobots in two massive blockbusters, in terms of recognisability, he’s probably only behind Prime and Bumblebee in terms of an Autobot you could build a book around.
Ironhide having just been killed in the main-book is one very good reason not to do it, but luckily, for most Transformers, death is more an unscheduled vacation that a serious hindrance.
I’ve had some issues with the pacing of Costa’s writing, and this first issue opens with the first of a couple of extraordinary examples in this issue, as we get a full page on the deserted Cybertron, showing it empty, before coming in on a console with one red light flashing on it. Something that could have been done easily in three panels (an establishing shot of Cybertron, an exterior of the abandoned building, the lit-up console) is dragged out to a ridiculous extent.
Recruiting ambitious idiots like this is why you’ll lose.
I’d actually forgotten that IDW’s next miniseries launched before Last Stand of the Wreckers had ended, going forward, the Costa run will generally have just the one accompanying series alongside it.
Doing a miniseries about Ironhide makes a degree of sense, not only is he one of the best remembered original characters, his namesake in the Movies had also just been one of the main Autobots in two massive blockbusters, in terms of recognisability, he’s probably only behind Prime and Bumblebee in terms of an Autobot you could build a book around.
Ironhide having just been killed in the main-book is one very good reason not to do it, but luckily, for most Transformers, death is more an unscheduled vacation that a serious hindrance.
I’ve had some issues with the pacing of Costa’s writing, and this first issue opens with the first of a couple of extraordinary examples in this issue, as we get a full page on the deserted Cybertron, showing it empty, before coming in on a console with one red light flashing on it. Something that could have been done easily in three panels (an establishing shot of Cybertron, an exterior of the abandoned building, the lit-up console) is dragged out to a ridiculous extent.
DIE BLURR
It also rather undoes the impact of the final twist of the issue, which up till the end is acting as if this entire series is simply going to be a story about Ironhide in the distant past, long before he died.
In said past, we get a double page spread of Optimus leading a team of Autobots against a Decepticon advance. Well, except for Prowl, who, in the first of several oddly composed panels from the normally reliable Casey Coller, seems to be ready to shoot Blurr. Which is as close as Prowl comes to being in character the whole issue.
After him sitting around and mopping for months now in the ongoing, it is nice to have a proactive effective Optimus, determined to stop an energon shipment that will ensure the city they’re in will fall. So, we have him giving sharp, fast orders, listening to his troops but making his own decisions (such as firmly telling Windcharger that, no, he can’t do something in Transformers media for once in his life).
He also ignores dear, kind Prowl’s advice of just doing an airstrike on the convoy itself, he’s determined to take care of it personally. Which immediately goes badly for him, as he’s quickly attacked by Soundwave, who uses Rumble to jump on him from behind in a panel that makes Optimus look like a top who is experimenting with being a bottom and regretting it.
In said past, we get a double page spread of Optimus leading a team of Autobots against a Decepticon advance. Well, except for Prowl, who, in the first of several oddly composed panels from the normally reliable Casey Coller, seems to be ready to shoot Blurr. Which is as close as Prowl comes to being in character the whole issue.
After him sitting around and mopping for months now in the ongoing, it is nice to have a proactive effective Optimus, determined to stop an energon shipment that will ensure the city they’re in will fall. So, we have him giving sharp, fast orders, listening to his troops but making his own decisions (such as firmly telling Windcharger that, no, he can’t do something in Transformers media for once in his life).
He also ignores dear, kind Prowl’s advice of just doing an airstrike on the convoy itself, he’s determined to take care of it personally. Which immediately goes badly for him, as he’s quickly attacked by Soundwave, who uses Rumble to jump on him from behind in a panel that makes Optimus look like a top who is experimenting with being a bottom and regretting it.
Living his best life.
Luckily for Prime, Ironhide then appears and saves the day, with dialogue making it clear that he’s just late and therefore all of Prime’s “I must do this alone” stuff was just him punking Prowl.
Soundwave being taken out and captured here could in theory lead to a much later issue during James Roberts’ run, where we see him as a prisoner in a place called “The Institute,” which gives this story a much darker feel. But more on that when we get there.
We then get a rather wonderful and unexpected returning element, as Ramjet is leading the convoy. Who is having a good bitch about being ordered to walk rather than fly, and how one day he’ll show everyone by being in charge. At which point he gets pistol-whipped and mocked for being an ambitious idiot by Prime. That Ramjet has always been like this is extremely pleasing.
Prime then tells the rest of the convoy, including Tankor and some Constructicons, they can either surrender or the watching from above Ironhide will use Soundwave’s gun to take out the energon, which will blow up several city blocks and kill them all.
Which Ironhide seems surprisingly keen on, giggling away to himself.
Soundwave being taken out and captured here could in theory lead to a much later issue during James Roberts’ run, where we see him as a prisoner in a place called “The Institute,” which gives this story a much darker feel. But more on that when we get there.
We then get a rather wonderful and unexpected returning element, as Ramjet is leading the convoy. Who is having a good bitch about being ordered to walk rather than fly, and how one day he’ll show everyone by being in charge. At which point he gets pistol-whipped and mocked for being an ambitious idiot by Prime. That Ramjet has always been like this is extremely pleasing.
Prime then tells the rest of the convoy, including Tankor and some Constructicons, they can either surrender or the watching from above Ironhide will use Soundwave’s gun to take out the energon, which will blow up several city blocks and kill them all.
Which Ironhide seems surprisingly keen on, giggling away to himself.
uwu
It’s a bluff that works though, as at a party back at Autobase later, Prowl is in awe of Prime having gotten a troop of Decepticons to surrender without firing a shot. Even going so far as to say how much he admires Prime.
Which firmly shows that the Prowl Spotlight was just desperate ass covering rather than an intentional character development by Costa, he just sees Prowl as a really nice, chill guy.
Not so chill is Prime, who just tells everyone to get pissed rather than giving a speech, something he confesses to Kup and Ironhide out on a balcony he doesn’t feel able to do, despite Kup’s insistence that he need to get used to doing so now.
Boy, is he going to regret encouraging Prime to do more speeches.
Indeed, Optimus does manage to give a massive speech about how the war isn’t going to end any time soon because it’s about defeating an idea, and you can only do that by changing minds.
Which firmly shows that the Prowl Spotlight was just desperate ass covering rather than an intentional character development by Costa, he just sees Prowl as a really nice, chill guy.
Not so chill is Prime, who just tells everyone to get pissed rather than giving a speech, something he confesses to Kup and Ironhide out on a balcony he doesn’t feel able to do, despite Kup’s insistence that he need to get used to doing so now.
Boy, is he going to regret encouraging Prime to do more speeches.
Indeed, Optimus does manage to give a massive speech about how the war isn’t going to end any time soon because it’s about defeating an idea, and you can only do that by changing minds.
Ironhide: Except with guns.
With a mood killer like that, no wonder he doesn’t like giving speeches.
Oddly, I think this sequence features what is the first mention of Maccadam’s in IDW. I’d have sworn it would have been in the written by the super-fan of the UK comic Chaos Theory, but then, the bar was featured in the heavily used by Transformers writers around this time Ultimate Guide.
As Prime goes back into the party, Ironhide looks at him wistfully and declares he loves Optimus. But doesn’t understand him.
Well, we all love an enigma.
Back in the party, Ironhide is suspicious of an Autobot he doesn’t recognise looking shifty. For good reason, as the reader would recognise him as the Decepticon Action Master Axer.
Well, the reader who recognises their obscure Action Masters anyway.
Oddly, I think this sequence features what is the first mention of Maccadam’s in IDW. I’d have sworn it would have been in the written by the super-fan of the UK comic Chaos Theory, but then, the bar was featured in the heavily used by Transformers writers around this time Ultimate Guide.
As Prime goes back into the party, Ironhide looks at him wistfully and declares he loves Optimus. But doesn’t understand him.
Well, we all love an enigma.
Back in the party, Ironhide is suspicious of an Autobot he doesn’t recognise looking shifty. For good reason, as the reader would recognise him as the Decepticon Action Master Axer.
Well, the reader who recognises their obscure Action Masters anyway.
Not again...
Silverstreak however, ignores Ironhide’s questions as he’s far keener on getting sozzled. Which is the point it’s worth mentioning that the Wiki has a whole section devoted to the confusion over Silverstreak and Bluestreak during this era that goes into more depth than Bluestreak (or Silverstreak) ever gets as a character.
Seeing Axer pull a gun, and presumably thinking Kup needs sacking as security chief, Ironhide jumps in and, in a clear callback to his death in the ongoing, takes the hit…
Giving us the most extraordinary example of dragging out a sequence to meet the page-count yet seen in IDW as we get three full pages devoted to him waking up on a slab on Cybertron, wondering where everybody is and finding the streets empty. Something that could have been like a page at most. As with the opening, it screams of a writer desperate to pad things out.
The best part of the issue is Prime stopping the convoy, it’s fun and actually has a nicely written Prime. It’s also largely irrelevant, as the issue could easily have just been the party scene as we don’t really need to have it established that Prime and Ironhide are BFFs at this point in the run.
Seeing Axer pull a gun, and presumably thinking Kup needs sacking as security chief, Ironhide jumps in and, in a clear callback to his death in the ongoing, takes the hit…
Giving us the most extraordinary example of dragging out a sequence to meet the page-count yet seen in IDW as we get three full pages devoted to him waking up on a slab on Cybertron, wondering where everybody is and finding the streets empty. Something that could have been like a page at most. As with the opening, it screams of a writer desperate to pad things out.
The best part of the issue is Prime stopping the convoy, it’s fun and actually has a nicely written Prime. It’s also largely irrelevant, as the issue could easily have just been the party scene as we don’t really need to have it established that Prime and Ironhide are BFFs at this point in the run.
When the readers leave the book.
Indeed, the extent to which this could have been half an issue at most, makes me wonder if the original plan was for this to be a short arc (or even subplot) in the ongoing that got bumped up to its own miniseries, because, even by Costa’s standards, how drawn out this is, is ridiculous.
It doesn’t help that the generally solid Coller is not on his best game here, with everything feeling very static and oddly posed.
Of course, the second part will introduce what is seen as one of the more successful characters, so hopefully, we’ll have an upswing there.
Next week though, it’s a big one, as the Wreckers come home to roost…
THE TRANSFORMERS ISSUE 6
2010
COMMENT
KO-FI
It doesn’t help that the generally solid Coller is not on his best game here, with everything feeling very static and oddly posed.
Of course, the second part will introduce what is seen as one of the more successful characters, so hopefully, we’ll have an upswing there.
Next week though, it’s a big one, as the Wreckers come home to roost…
THE TRANSFORMERS ISSUE 6
2010
COMMENT
KO-FI
