Yo! You Talking Feminism? Andy Loves That Shit!
Issue 137: Ladies’ Night Part 1/Broken Glass! Part 4. 24th October 1987.
As far as I can work out it’s some sort of emotion heightener. Very addictive.
Happy Boxing Day! I’m actually writing this on Christmas Day because I love you all that much. For those who haven’t yet seen it, you can still play along with my CHRISTMAS QUIZ if you dare.
As far as I can work out it’s some sort of emotion heightener. Very addictive.
Happy Boxing Day! I’m actually writing this on Christmas Day because I love you all that much. For those who haven’t yet seen it, you can still play along with my CHRISTMAS QUIZ if you dare.
It was with some trepidation I opened up issue 137 in order to reread it for this piece. As I’ve talked about before, the (now resolved) public spat between Furman and Mairghread Scott over his original conception of female Transformers in the IDW Universe back in the first half of 2014 had led to a lot of discussion of his treatment of female characters in general, something that did not always reflect favourably on him (not helped by the fact Transformers is generally quite sexist anyway, something my Mother was annoyed by even when I was a kid and she clearly wasn’t alone as Prime’s Rib feels as if it was written by a man who has been accosted by similar mothers once too often when he’s happened to mention what his day job is at dinner parties).
Luckily however, the treatment of the female characters (at least in this first part of Ladies’ Night) is, with one big exception, perfectly fine. Yes, you can tell it was written at a time when action comics were still very much a sausage fest- though as also previously noted, Action Force does much better on that score- and it is trying a bit too hard on the “Look, vaginas!” score. Tellingly in the feature on this story in the Classics UK book Furman describes this story as “Offbeat”, as if just having women as the leads is enough in and of itself to make an adventure strange and unusual even though everything else about it is rather pedestrian, this is after all no less than the third British story set around Joy’s TV crew getting into trouble and we’re all sick of that bloody volcano at this point.
I think the advantage here is these are flesh and blood women, whereas the bulk of female characters Furman has written for over the years (or at least, the bulk in comics that we’ve read) have been giant robots, leading to that conflict between the fact Furman clearly doesn’t like the idea of female Transformers but still feels compelled to feature them, and worse still “Explain” them.
Luckily however, the treatment of the female characters (at least in this first part of Ladies’ Night) is, with one big exception, perfectly fine. Yes, you can tell it was written at a time when action comics were still very much a sausage fest- though as also previously noted, Action Force does much better on that score- and it is trying a bit too hard on the “Look, vaginas!” score. Tellingly in the feature on this story in the Classics UK book Furman describes this story as “Offbeat”, as if just having women as the leads is enough in and of itself to make an adventure strange and unusual even though everything else about it is rather pedestrian, this is after all no less than the third British story set around Joy’s TV crew getting into trouble and we’re all sick of that bloody volcano at this point.
I think the advantage here is these are flesh and blood women, whereas the bulk of female characters Furman has written for over the years (or at least, the bulk in comics that we’ve read) have been giant robots, leading to that conflict between the fact Furman clearly doesn’t like the idea of female Transformers but still feels compelled to feature them, and worse still “Explain” them.
The two non-terrible women.
That however, is a debate for when we reach Space Pirates!, here the issue isn’t so much one of feminism, but professionalism. We open on Mount Verona where returning supporting character Susan Hoffman is investigating the explosion and mysterious metal wreckage found in the area, only to instead stumble across the lavafied bodies of Ultra Magnus and Galvatron.
This is odd as Hoffman is an archaeologist and explorer. Investigating mysterious volcanic eruptions should be completely out of her field, especially as her last appearance suggested her area of expertise was the Roman period. It’s also not unclear why a representative of the British heritage society would be brought in anyway; it’s not as if there aren’t more local experts that could be called upon. Plus, as this stage the US government should just automatically put down any strange events in Oregon involving odd technology to the outer space robot people, RAAT should be all over this with big guns. Calling Hoffman in is the equivalent of sending Tony Robinson to sort out that Icelandic volcano that was causing such problems for air flights a few years ago.
Things get even stranger when Joy Meadows comes along to interview Hoffman for her TV show, Ladies’ Night (title CLANG!). That being the same Meadows who, the last time she was involved with the Transformers, was told in no uncertain terms that if she ever tried to get involved with their affairs again Soundwave would do something ‘orrid to her and she seemed to take it pretty seriously. Does she really think “Well, you only warned me off the Dinobots, you said nothing about these guys!” would stop a giant foot stomping down on her? At the very least she should be absolutely crapping herself when Soundwave shows up.
These problems aside though, the two characters are well handled, being treated as smart professionals who’d be written in exactly the same way if they were new male characters, and it’s nice to have Joy without the burden of being Sludge’s unrequited love interest. The advantage in reusing them, in however contrived a way, is in it creating a sense of a comic with a history to it, their gender is almost irrelevant to that.
This is odd as Hoffman is an archaeologist and explorer. Investigating mysterious volcanic eruptions should be completely out of her field, especially as her last appearance suggested her area of expertise was the Roman period. It’s also not unclear why a representative of the British heritage society would be brought in anyway; it’s not as if there aren’t more local experts that could be called upon. Plus, as this stage the US government should just automatically put down any strange events in Oregon involving odd technology to the outer space robot people, RAAT should be all over this with big guns. Calling Hoffman in is the equivalent of sending Tony Robinson to sort out that Icelandic volcano that was causing such problems for air flights a few years ago.
Things get even stranger when Joy Meadows comes along to interview Hoffman for her TV show, Ladies’ Night (title CLANG!). That being the same Meadows who, the last time she was involved with the Transformers, was told in no uncertain terms that if she ever tried to get involved with their affairs again Soundwave would do something ‘orrid to her and she seemed to take it pretty seriously. Does she really think “Well, you only warned me off the Dinobots, you said nothing about these guys!” would stop a giant foot stomping down on her? At the very least she should be absolutely crapping herself when Soundwave shows up.
These problems aside though, the two characters are well handled, being treated as smart professionals who’d be written in exactly the same way if they were new male characters, and it’s nice to have Joy without the burden of being Sludge’s unrequited love interest. The advantage in reusing them, in however contrived a way, is in it creating a sense of a comic with a history to it, their gender is almost irrelevant to that.
"I've been trying to forget you".
Unfortunately Cindy then shows up, as whiney and generally useless as ever. She’s been upset at having run out on Ultra Magnus just because he went to her certain death thanks to her advice. She’s still as wet as Niagara Falls and her self-pitying moaning results in you feeling that she thinks being upset at the burial in lava of Ultra Magnus is worse for her than being buried in the lava was for Magnus. This, along with her Galvatron filled dream being pink, pretty much undoes all the good work with the other two leads and makes you wish she hadn’t gone to sleep with the TV on so she’d have never turned up at the volcano to have a hissy fit.
On the robot side of things, we get a small but telling moment at the Decepticon’s island base where Shockwave orders Soundwave to destroy Galvatron, his increasingly irrational fear of the future Decepticon will become more and more a thing as the series goes on.
Normally I’d also comment on the oddity of Soundwave picking up on the events at the volcano but not the Ark based Autobots, but the Grimlock’s leadership issues in the American stories actually provides quite a neat explanation as to why they’re off their game here.
This means it’s down to Blaster’s Band of Buggered to sort things out, and they’re introduced in a lovely scene where they’re just sitting around outside an electrical shop watching Herbie on “Tee-Vee”, that actually does a much better job of portraying Blaster and Goldbug as people who like each other rather than a Bastard and his Biatch as they have been in the American stories. There’s also some decent work from Furman on the Combaticons when they arrive with Soundwave to plant bombs on the mountain, including what I believe is the first (and possibly only as there’s not going to be many more opportunities for him to get lines) example of Swindle being a mercenary git in the comic.
This brings us to the central moral dilemma of the story: With the Combaticons there to destroy Galvatron surely the Autobots should just let them do it, even if it means removing any chance of saving Ultra Magnus?
As with last week’s Swoop dilemma, how this will resolve itself is fairly obvious, but for now the Autobots leave (after Goldbug show’s remarkable restraint not telling Cindy to bugger off) and it’s going to be down to the girls to save the day!
Despite some fudging to get everyone back together, this would actually be a rather fun issue if not for Cindy, who is rather like the “Swoop used to be called Divebomb” thing in being a dangling thread the comic really didn’t need to revisit. Dan Reed’s art really struggles with the robots this week as well. However, despite basically completely blowing the events of the Annual story for anyone who still hasn’t read it, there’s a lot to like here.
On the robot side of things, we get a small but telling moment at the Decepticon’s island base where Shockwave orders Soundwave to destroy Galvatron, his increasingly irrational fear of the future Decepticon will become more and more a thing as the series goes on.
Normally I’d also comment on the oddity of Soundwave picking up on the events at the volcano but not the Ark based Autobots, but the Grimlock’s leadership issues in the American stories actually provides quite a neat explanation as to why they’re off their game here.
This means it’s down to Blaster’s Band of Buggered to sort things out, and they’re introduced in a lovely scene where they’re just sitting around outside an electrical shop watching Herbie on “Tee-Vee”, that actually does a much better job of portraying Blaster and Goldbug as people who like each other rather than a Bastard and his Biatch as they have been in the American stories. There’s also some decent work from Furman on the Combaticons when they arrive with Soundwave to plant bombs on the mountain, including what I believe is the first (and possibly only as there’s not going to be many more opportunities for him to get lines) example of Swindle being a mercenary git in the comic.
This brings us to the central moral dilemma of the story: With the Combaticons there to destroy Galvatron surely the Autobots should just let them do it, even if it means removing any chance of saving Ultra Magnus?
As with last week’s Swoop dilemma, how this will resolve itself is fairly obvious, but for now the Autobots leave (after Goldbug show’s remarkable restraint not telling Cindy to bugger off) and it’s going to be down to the girls to save the day!
Despite some fudging to get everyone back together, this would actually be a rather fun issue if not for Cindy, who is rather like the “Swoop used to be called Divebomb” thing in being a dangling thread the comic really didn’t need to revisit. Dan Reed’s art really struggles with the robots this week as well. However, despite basically completely blowing the events of the Annual story for anyone who still hasn’t read it, there’s a lot to like here.
Chromedome dodging or getting blasted?
The final part of Broken Glass! is badly hurt by being a big fight and Springer clearly struggling with the action. The moment where this really stands out is a panel where it looks as if Scorponok is blasting Chromdome out of his way, but which the dialogue makes clear is supposed to be the Autobot pulling off some skilful driving moves to avoid the Elector-Sting, much to the Decepticons surprise.
There’s also the oddness of Fortress Maximus being drawn with Cerebros’ head in some panels but not all (if he’d been consistent with it you’d at least be able to put it down to Springer trying to suggest Headmaster Maximus has a different looking head). This isn’t a barely featured background character like Cyclonus, but the main lead of the series. Springer not being able to get his face right and the editor not caring enough to notice really sums up the visual problems of this series.
That said, though it’s likely a similar art error the panel of Scorponok as a half robot, half scorpion is actually pretty cool looking.
The binary bonding idea is treated oddly as well, in the same panel we have Brainstorm talking to Highbrow as if there is a genuine merging of personality going on (“That’s the Nebulan in you”) whilst at the same time Fortress Maximus talks to Highbrow as if he is just the Nebulan (“Don’t get too attached to it [Hardhead’s gun], Hardhead – it’s only on loan!). Whilst still calling him Hardhead. Very confusing.
The issue does end well as the people of the city are initially wary of their saviours until they reveal the men in control of them, but Llyria is shocked at Galan and runs away from him in disgust. Unlike Cindy’s moaning this works as her concerns are legitimate from the point of view of someone raised in a pacifist society. We know the Decepticons would still have killed everyone even if the heads had been handed over but she doesn’t, and see a self confessed man of peace actually enjoy saving the day with fighting is something that understandably unsettles her.
There’s also the oddness of Fortress Maximus being drawn with Cerebros’ head in some panels but not all (if he’d been consistent with it you’d at least be able to put it down to Springer trying to suggest Headmaster Maximus has a different looking head). This isn’t a barely featured background character like Cyclonus, but the main lead of the series. Springer not being able to get his face right and the editor not caring enough to notice really sums up the visual problems of this series.
That said, though it’s likely a similar art error the panel of Scorponok as a half robot, half scorpion is actually pretty cool looking.
The binary bonding idea is treated oddly as well, in the same panel we have Brainstorm talking to Highbrow as if there is a genuine merging of personality going on (“That’s the Nebulan in you”) whilst at the same time Fortress Maximus talks to Highbrow as if he is just the Nebulan (“Don’t get too attached to it [Hardhead’s gun], Hardhead – it’s only on loan!). Whilst still calling him Hardhead. Very confusing.
The issue does end well as the people of the city are initially wary of their saviours until they reveal the men in control of them, but Llyria is shocked at Galan and runs away from him in disgust. Unlike Cindy’s moaning this works as her concerns are legitimate from the point of view of someone raised in a pacifist society. We know the Decepticons would still have killed everyone even if the heads had been handed over but she doesn’t, and see a self confessed man of peace actually enjoy saving the day with fighting is something that understandably unsettles her.
One comic shall fall fairly soon.
Perhaps as a sign of how the sister book is struggling, the entire sidebar of Transformation is given over to promoting issue 35 of Action Force and the face that one of the main characters—from a choice of Flint, Lady Jaye or Destro--is going to (seemingly only I’d wager, note how it implies death but doesn’t actually come out and say it, using terms like “Hard fall” and “Bow out” instead) die. What’s interesting here is the title of the sidebar is one of the early examples of the phrase “One shall fall” becoming badly overused in Transformers products.
In Grimgrams John Boone asks if there’ll be a Data Scan for the Targetmasters as well, something Grimlock obviously isn’t so keen on. He does however provide the tech specs for the Horrorcons, left off the Headmasters Data Scan for space reasons.
Meanwhile Christopher Millwood from Blackpool is someone who liked Inhumanoids better as a backup strip than Iron Man, a somewhat unique viewpoint I’d imagine. He also suggests reprinting old Transformers stories as the second strip, something that is depressingly prescient and won’t go down very well when it does happen.
There’s the possibility of a topical political joke in Robo-Capers this week as the still stranded on Earth aliens wind up visiting 10 Downing Street and meet Thatcher, who seems to have a copy of Spy Catcher (though the title is hard to make out, it could well be Spy Catalogue) in her wastepaper bin. Lew Stringer likely drew this during the period in mid 1987 when the ongoing legal battles over the British government’s efforts to suppress this book (despite most of the things in it already having been revealed in at least one previous novel) saw the ban on reporting of its contents by the English press briefly lifted before the Law Lords reinstated it. So its presence here is not only slightly illegal, but likely reflects Stringer’s thoughts on the whole affair.
EDIT: All round lovely chap Lew Stringer has confirmed on Twitter it is indeed Spy Catcher, and the book being in the bin reflects his take on Thatcher's attitude towards it rather than his own.
Next week, unless the government suppress me, it’s girls against robots. Who is best?
ISSUE 136
1987
COMMENT
In Grimgrams John Boone asks if there’ll be a Data Scan for the Targetmasters as well, something Grimlock obviously isn’t so keen on. He does however provide the tech specs for the Horrorcons, left off the Headmasters Data Scan for space reasons.
Meanwhile Christopher Millwood from Blackpool is someone who liked Inhumanoids better as a backup strip than Iron Man, a somewhat unique viewpoint I’d imagine. He also suggests reprinting old Transformers stories as the second strip, something that is depressingly prescient and won’t go down very well when it does happen.
There’s the possibility of a topical political joke in Robo-Capers this week as the still stranded on Earth aliens wind up visiting 10 Downing Street and meet Thatcher, who seems to have a copy of Spy Catcher (though the title is hard to make out, it could well be Spy Catalogue) in her wastepaper bin. Lew Stringer likely drew this during the period in mid 1987 when the ongoing legal battles over the British government’s efforts to suppress this book (despite most of the things in it already having been revealed in at least one previous novel) saw the ban on reporting of its contents by the English press briefly lifted before the Law Lords reinstated it. So its presence here is not only slightly illegal, but likely reflects Stringer’s thoughts on the whole affair.
EDIT: All round lovely chap Lew Stringer has confirmed on Twitter it is indeed Spy Catcher, and the book being in the bin reflects his take on Thatcher's attitude towards it rather than his own.
Next week, unless the government suppress me, it’s girls against robots. Who is best?
ISSUE 136
1987
COMMENT
