This coming Wednesday (October 10th) sees the release of Transformers: Regeneration One #84, and as is customary, by way of an appetite whetter, I’ve prepared a tease/preview of what you can expect. There are minor spoliers, so if you’re of a sensitive disposition look away now. Right then, by now we all know what’s coming right? Earth lies in post-apocalyptic ruins, thanks to Megatron and his zombie-con army, and Optimus Prime took his eye well and truly off the ball and feels the buck stops with him. And so the titanic (final?) dust-up between these two TF icons is now well and truly on the cards. But that’s next issue, right? So what happens in the meantime? Well, for a start, the Wreckers have no idea that help is coming. In fact, they’re almost certain their attempt to send an SOS back to Cybertron failed. And one of their own (namely Kup) is in enemy hands, infected by (and slowly dying of) a nasty Scraplet infection. So while we wait for the cavalry, they kick their own do or die plan(s) into action. Having been reliably informed that the Ark is where Megatron’s getting all his tactical oomph from, the solution seems straightforward — take out the Ark. Simple, right? Except it’s not. Far from it. And to complicate matters it’s important to at least make Megatron think their focus is on liberating Kup, which means dividing their meagre forces. So cue full bore action on two fronts, as one team of Wreckers head for Washington D.C. and the rest brave the Yukon ice and a whole slew of hidden dangers, courtesy of the Ark’s A.I. — ‘Auntie’. But it’s not quite as one-sided as you might think. Our human cast has a role to play too, a pivotal one. But are things going to end well? Probably not. This is me we’re talking about after all. Is that it? Not at all. There’s some portentous stuff happening on Cybertron, as Hot Rod is plunged into a vision so frighteningly real one might even start to think that what’s happening over on Earth is small potatoes in the grand scheme of RG1, and then there’s Starscream. A kind of mute bystander thus far, unable to do more than obey the commands of Megatron like some kind of mute automaton. But (infinitesimally) that’s about to change, and set in motion a gut-wrenching sequence of events! It’s pedal to the metal action all the way this issue, as the first story arc “Loose Ends” reaches its scorching penultimate chapter. Miss a page, and you’ll regret it forever. UPDATE – Preview can now be viewed here.
simon furman 
Can’t wait for this. Here’s to hoping for some Galvatron soon.
I can’t wait either ,seems very intriguing .The one thing I do miss from RG1 ,that was in G2 was the second (US comic ) encounter with the G.I.Joe team and Cobra .See now that G2 is no longer a part of ,but now a parallel universe to the G1 comic ,there has been only the one encounter .With the state of the earth I can’t believe that the Joes just lied down and took it or that Cobra did not take notice .Just something to think about .:)
Yes. Great to see flashes of life from Starscream. It didn’t seem right to see him, of all people, reduced to being a mindless zombie. Shades of Impactor from the Flame saga? Here’s hoping.
Starscream trying to say kill Ratchet! Oh I really hope Megatron doesnt finally die because of Starscream!
Yo Simon! Another great issue and 16 to go. My favorite part was seeing Soundwave make his move. Please tell me that if Thunderwing is revived, there will be a bloodbath. I love it. The haters can hate all they want but this is honestly worth the 21 years. I wait for 85 like a madman. Even though the cover gives hint to the victor, I am not entirely sure how this will go down but I will say that I have hope that this paves the way for Galvatron. Fingers crossed. So we are getting Scorponok, Thunderwing, Shockwave, Bludgeon, Soundwave etc…the big G would be icing on the cake. Thanks for all of this.
As much as I love this series, I have to question why 5 issues was neccessary to tell this story when it could have been over and done with in 3
Could it? Well yes, I suppose so. If you’re willing to sacrifice scene setting, subplots, character beats, foreshadowing, recaps, giving the action room to breathe, etc, etc. It would end up incredibly cramped and people would be saying this story could/should have been told in 5 issues. I’m sorry, but I stand by the pacing so far, 100 per cent. 21 years of TF time have passed, stuff’s happened (a lot’s happened on Earth), things have reset and must be broken again, and the cast members have moved on (or not). Let’s just quickly break down the issues so far…
#81: there’s a heap of unfinished business, not everyone’s a happy bunny on Cybertron, characters are antsy and Prime’s got his head in the sand, and is haunted by his death/rebirth. Soundwave’s neo-Decepticons are causing trouble, and it’s got out of hand. The Wreckers blast in and sort stuff out. But Kup’s still not happy. So he and the Wreckers hitch a ride on the Cosmic Carnival and get to Earth, whereupon they’re shot out of the sky by Megatron, who — in the intervening 20 or so years — has devastated and conquered Earth. Oh and Bludgeon’s out there somewhere and he’s got an axe to grind.
#82: The Wreckers are hunted by Megatron’s zombie cons. Their only chance is to get a message to Cybertron. Meanwhile, Megatron’s got Starscream on a leash and Ratchet reduced to a disembodied head. Back on Cybertron, Ultra Magnus is losing his cool, while on Nebulos Grimlock is breaking all the rules in his efforts to counter the Nucleon that stopped him being able to transform and has done something bad to Slag. Oh, and we learn the heads of the Headmasters are being re-integrated with new bodies — unsuccessfully to date. Grimlock is attacked by mind-controlled Nebulans and blasted/captured by you-know-who. Meanwhile, Kup makes a sacrifice play and gets captured by Megatron, who always wanted to get a message out. Are we done? Not yet. We’re about to introduce Circuit Smasher and a bunch of new human cast members.
#83: Finally, we have some breathing space to learn exactly what happened to Earth in the intervening 21 years and how Spike became Circuit Smasher. Prime has a conversation with Hot Rod which basically sets up several underpinning themes of the entire RG1 run, then — on learning that Megatron is loose — mobilises a whole response team and heads for Earth. Which, we learn, suits Soundwave fine, because Bludgeon has something he wants him to do and their absence (and Hot Rod’s lack of command experience) allows them to do. And, after Bludgeon (in his Warworld) has eradicated another highly evolved race and stolen their tech, we learn that something centres around Thunderwing. Oh and Kup has been infected by the Scraplet virus.
#84: We learn Starscream is not as helpless as he/we thought, and meanwhile a two-tiered plan to cut off Megatron’s source of tech/power, etc and liberate Kup goes into full swing. Now we know already this can’t be easy. The humans have been trying for years and got killed mostly. So if the Wreckers can just waltz through the Ark’s defences in a matter of moments (or panels) everyone starts crying foul. It has to be difficult. And it is. They take casualties. They have to work with the humans in their exo-suits. And meanwhile, Spinger & co get totally trashed by Megatron and his zombie cons and fail to rescue Kup. Then — Optimus Prime and the Autobots show up. And Starscream wants to tell Kup how to beat Megatron.
Now if you can fit all that in 3 issues and not kill the artist, you’re simply a better writer than me.
Oh wait — there’s still issue #85, which has this whole titanic showdown with two of the most iconic characters in the whole TF universe. Damn, forgot about that.
LOL!!! Your the professional. I question however. Could not Starscream have shown signs of being able to break Megs hold in issue 82? Could Grimlocks subplot have waited ready until a future arc? Was there really no way to condense this stuff down, and therefore have built up a bigger Megs vs Prime showdown? No doubt the fight between the two will be great, but there was no real build for both of them, espeically in Primes corner. And if both die next issue, I really wouldn’t call the end result epic or satisfying. 20 years for a one issue,22 page, final fight between to character who represent Transformers at it’s core, really?
wow you realling are spoliling us long time uk readers most americans wont know who aunty is and wow guardian units awesome i really miss reading my uk comics i had every issue but unfortuantly they got thrown away when i was on holiday
Sean – there’s probably an infinite number of ways to go with this, but to address the specific points:
• Kup’s presence is the spur and opportunity that inspires Starscream to push himself that extra half mile and try — even though he thinks it will maybe kill him — to put a spanner in Megatron’s plans, and Kup is entirely under Megatron’s beady eye in #82, so trying to squeeze it in there makes absolutely no sense.
• And sure, Grimlock’s bit could have been pushed back to #86, but then he’d have been entirely absent from the first arc (Loose Ends, remember — and he and Nebulos/Headmasters are big ones), and I’d now probably be fielding complaints about the lack of any Grimlock.
And as for next issue’s tussle between Megs and Prime, why not wait and see what you think of it before pre-judging it’s epic-ness (or lack thereof) and level of satisfaction on your part?
–Simon
So having a small panel of Starscream twitching with Megs back turned would have been to much? And people have been complaining about the lack of Shockwave so what’s the difference? My one and only issue Simon is that there just doesn’t seem to be a lot of story in these 4 issues. The whole thing is rather small in scope. I have your entire 80’s run via Titan trades and it just seems to be that you used to get a lot more story on the page. I also have various trades of your UK stories, and you definitely did a lot with 15 pages back in the day. Therefore I just don’t buy that you couldn’t have cut some of this stuff down while at the same time achieving your ultimate goal of tying up the lose ends. And maybe that’s the issue, maybe doing an entire 5 issue arc of tying up unfinished plot threads was always going to be a challenge. IMO the idea has hurt the upcoming fight between Megs and Prime, because all it is, is a lose end. Maybe if Prime had been more of a primary character, our lead perhaps, then showing more story of him overcoming his complacency would have helped the build up between him and Megatron. It definitely won’t read as well if your starting with issue 80, where Prime is a primary figure returning triumphant, who then goes on to be a secondary character in the next issue then dies again(remember he’s died twice already in the same continuity) 5 issues later. Of course he might live, but it doesn’t seem to be going that way with Hot Rod seemingly about to take the lead. In the end Simon, I just expected more from your first arc. That’s all. It’s still pretty entertaining, and you have written the hell out of MEGATRON. Critics like to point out which actor seems to be having the most fun in the movie, and the same goes for this comic, Megatron is having the most fun. Sad to think that he’ll more than likely take a dirt nap next issue, with Ratchet(another great character who had a satisfying end in the original comic) about to be shot in the face. Your detractors like to point out your love of what they call GRIMDARK, which I guess is your love for doing brutal things to your characters and characters people love. Anyway, I’m sticking with it Simon, and I’ll buy every damn issue until the end. I just hope it’s worth it.
I bet Simon would love to jam every panel full of story and stream of consciousness rumination, old school style, but unfortunately today’s ambient attention span is somewhat shorter. These things need to appeal to the eye candy crowd just a little if they’re going to sell through to the end. That’s just guesswork on my part, though. All things considered, I think he’s made a good compromise between story and visuals. Speaking for myself, I don’t need a new reason to see Optimus Prime and Megatron pound each other into obsolescence — I think the 80s has brainwashed me into craving it.
Hey Sean,
I have been a fan of these books since I was a kid, picked up #5 at a news stand. Followed it all the way till the end. The thing is, with regeneration, maybe I love the book for different reasons than most of the folks complaining. I think the art is amazing and fits these characters to the tee. With that said, maybe it’s that I care more about the side plots that are unfolding than what is happening on Earth. It will make me sad to see Megs go but he has had his fun and if you look at it, Megs and Prime have barely had a hand to hand since the first 4 issues (I don’t count the computer game from #24 or the merged Ratchetron from #70). This will be a good fight. I hope Prime lives only to be taken down by someone else like Galvatron or Thunderwing. It’s the side plots that I can’t wait for. I flipped out seeing Scorponok’s legs in 82 and the mold of Thunderwing in 81. I was one of the disappointed kids in 91, just out of 9th grade and learning the comic was ending. This creative team has been a part of my life for a long time, Senior included, and it gives me great joy to be able to read new stories albeit for a limited time. I just wonder if there are others who feel this way. These characters are very important to me and it is just amazing that IDW is giving us a chance to see this happen. I consider us lucky and as much as i wish this wasn’t a finite book, I understand why it is. I think Simon is only scratching the surface and already, so much has happened. I want more.
In 82, Starscream is the ONLY zombiecon who’s eyes are illuminated, although not at “normal” intensity which does actually hint that Starscream is not quite the same as the others. Not one panel is wasted there. The opening arc establishes enough of what happened before for new readers, enough of where things are for returning readers and where things are going for all readers, and at all times moving forwards.
Nice issue, especially the ending, though the inner twelve year old in me from 20+ years ago is still stomping and demanding to see the fate of Galvatron and Shockwave. I will say that Spike is a little harsher than the Spike I remember, threatening to pulverize the autobots if they don’t do what he wants. That being said, Circuit Breaker was also “a little harsher” than pre-op Josie Beller.
And I called it several issues ago that Ratchet’s link with Megatron would have something to do with the final battle! 🙂
Michael
I don’t want this to seem like I’m putting Simon’s writing down, but “More than Meets the Eye” and “Robots in the Disguise” are far more dense and get way more story on the page.
well sean i guess thats the difference between a us team and a uk team, simon im dying to see my fav characters razorclaw,ratbat,shockwave and any chance of bringing deaths head back as we could forget about all the stuff in the marvel universe deaths head with his normal body ie green/ red or the blue gold version from his amazing uk series this is a longshot but as a seperate book how about dragons teeth/claws damn i need to win the lottery and fund that book for you 🙂
Two things, Sean. 1, I’d completely contest your assertion that there’s not a lot of story in these issues. There are multiple storylines and a whole heap of characters going through various loops. And 2, you’re slightly missing the point. RG1 is supposed to be different to MTMTE & RID (both of which I love). RG1 is deliberately retro in its storytelling, so it looks like it belongs with the previous #80 issues and not solidly in the here and now. I want it to be demonstrably different to RID & MTMTE. Just hold it up against Infiltration or Stormbringer or War Within or Spotlight Shockwave and the differences in approach/delivery are huge. Which was always the idea. In fact, it’s how IDW wanted it, so there’s clear differential.
And while you may not want to seem like you’re putting my writing down, this degree of blanket negativity does make it feel that way, especially here on my personal blog. I’m happy to take criticism, but this is starting to feel like a personal attack on my general writing ability, rather than constructive points on the issues themselves. You want to just slag me off, please do it on one of the many general TF forums out there.
I’ve just received (and read) #84. Wonderful as ever. Although I can see where some of the criticism is coming from, I wholeheartedly disagree with it. I have utter faith in your writing, Simon, as I have done for nigh on 30 years, and I love the pacing thus far. You seem to be playing the long game with the various plots and subplots, and I have a feeling it’s all building up to something spectacular. You’ve always been exemplary at dramatic pay-offs, and I have no reason to expect otherwise with you at the helm. Keep up the incredible, densely-plotted, intrigue-laden work!
Again, thank you for the nods to UK-exclusive aspects, such as the Robot Buster suits and the Guardians. Speaking of the younger, perma-pink-t-shirted Witwicky, will we get to learn of his fate along the way (along with Jesse, ‘O’… ah, I suppose we don’t really care enough about him and just assume the worst)? I can’t imagine Sparkplug’s still around given his coronary history.
Again, thank you for another splendid issue, and another reminder (as if I needed one) as to why you inspired me to start writing my own fiction in the first place (by way of example, at the tender age of 9, I was reading Target: 2006, and you introduced me to the word ‘reverberate’. I managed to sneak that into a great many stories in my English Language lessons that year in school, let me tell you).
Well, we’re a fifth of the way until the end… I know that it’s too much to hope for, but I would love an open ending with the possibility of a spin-off or a true ‘sequel’ to this nearly 30 year old story. It’s this iteration of the characters that I’ve grown up with; as much as I like the other books (and, I suppose, the films), it’s just not the same. Since RiD (and the initial Dreamwave G1 stuff, which I could never get into; it felt like a professionally-produced fanfic for the cartoon), I think I’ve suffered from an overload of nearly annual reboots, diluting the franchise to the point of transparency. It’s so refreshing to have the original characters back, as they were meant to be. I know there’s unlikely to be a continuation after #100, but one can hope, yes?
Oops, I’ve rambled. Great stuff, Simon, and, by the way, a classic Marvel-era Transformers cliffhanger this issue. Roll on #85!
I want to be respectful, and so find myself in the awkward position of largely agreeing with Sean. The decompression is really bad here. More happened in 4 issues of your Marvel run than has happened so far in the first 4 (and a half!) issues of this run. It’s not that you can’t write… it’s that we know from past experience that you can do better.
ps simon blasters cassettes never made it into the story as well as the extra decepticon cassetttes i guess as toys of them didnt make it to this side of the pond any chance of writing them in
Simon, you guys are doing a great job and the pacing is a breath of fresh air compared to the more recent ‘BLAM!….it’s over’ storylines that have made their way into the world of comica today compared to the 80’s/90’s. I see a lot of the same ‘here’s a hint’ style in James Robert’s writing on MTMTE and have to say, it works. the building threat and chachter development it alows for really makes the characters attachable and it’s great to see how these plots play out for the (in my view) ‘real G1′ characters. I’m waiting exitedly for #85 and the showdown i’ve waited 25 years for, ’till then ‘Make Mine FURMAN!’
personally i’m loving the return to the original transformers we all know and love. I’ve not really liked any of the multitude of new versions…seems like every five minutes theres a new reboot or something else in its own continuity. Going back to the original and continuing from there is a pleasure to read. So in short, good work!
Another great issue and the story is now becomming epic again as we knew it would. Great to see not just Guardian units but the original Guardians from Wrath of Guardian & Wrath of Grimlock!
The one & only criticism I have, if you can call it that, is that I still wish it was a continuation like Larry Hamma is doing with GI Joe and not a conclusion. But I totally understand the reasons so that we get a proper ending for the story. (Still hoping IDW ask for a Regeneration Two)
For me although the other few comics are telling great Transformer stories too, this is the definitive Transformers story. Its the original and still the best and the reason why, not just me but thousands of people are still interested in Transformers.
Back to the story though. Hod Rod seems to be a Luke Skywalker character to Optimus Primes Obi-Wan Kenobi. Most of us have probably seen the cover to 85 but that has to be a red herring as to the outcome of the battle about to come.
I do have a question about this though. If the comic had continued back in the 90’s obviously the story of Megatron ruling Earth for over 20 years wouldn’t have happened and would have been over a shorter period but all the other things still could have been done. Would you have considered killing off either Prime or Megatron or was this decision made because we know its all coming to an end?
Good to see Buzzsaw and Lazerbeak getting involved in some of the action, hope those guys survive! Looks pretty bleak for Ratchet.
I could be wrong but I still think Gavatron is running the show as Megatron is totally insane!
My remarks about rid and mtmte were about how dense and full Of story they are, and not about how different they are to rg1. Are you actually saying that your original work was not dense and full of story? Myself and fans of those comics would beg to differ. Going by your work here the story in Rythums of darkness would have taken 2 books to tell. And I’m sorry to say this, but I’m far from the only fan with this complaint. Even those who love the comic speak of how decompressed it is compared to your original work. Go to any of the tf boards and you’ll see the same thoughts I have here. And if you think I’m mean atleast I didn’t say you need to stop writing tf comics and are running on fumes. I’m sorry for being an asshole here, and this will be my final word, but this was a great idea. I just want to look back on this series as as something great, and right now I’m not seeing the great.
I you don’t like Regeneration One that’s fine. Don’t read it. It is rather rude to come on here and criticize Simon Furman though.
Yes not everyone likes the comic on other websites yet lots of other people on the same boards do. Some people prefer Robots in Disguise and More than Meets The Eye. In fact some people only like one of those and not the other, it’s all down to personal taste. Saying others agree with you as if to say you are right is a bit childish.
Having worked in an industry of complaints it might surprise you to know that the vast majority of people who are happy and satisfied over a purchase don’t ever go onto boards to write comments.
I think it is better if you stop reading the comic.
@Darren
“… it might surprise you to know that the vast majority of people who are happy and satisfied over a purchase don’t ever go onto boards to write comments.”
Agreed. It’s one reason I stopped visiting message boards.
Don’t tell me what I should or should not be reading. I’ve already said I’m perfectly entertained by the comic I’m just worried by the pacing and the direction it’s going. And how is it rude to criticize? I’m not saying it sucks, and I’m actually giving reasons for my complaints. And I wasn’t using the complaints of other boards to prove I’m right. I was just pointing out that I’m not the only one with the same exact complaint. And i will continue to buy the comic thank you very much. I’ve read every marvel transformers comic and a good bit of the uk stuff, and I’ll see this through. And when I like something I’ll praise Simon and when I don’t I’ll point out what I didn’t like and explain why I didn’t like it. So now I hope we understand each other.
I think what you may actually mean Sean, its like a movie being released in ten minute chapters every month. It can be frustrating having to wait for each issue to be released, not knowing whats coming up. Regeneration One will be a great story once it gets collected in a trade and these slower paced issues won’t feel slow then.
Its just the modern way of story telling these days, for better or worse. Back in the 80s, a comic would usually be self contained, sometimes spreading over to two issues with a clear conclusion to that particular story. Then the next issue would usually take place in a completely different location, using different characters to tell a different story to the one before it but still following on from previous stories. I think thats what many criticisms here are about, that its not exactly like it used to be.
Regeneration One can only be judged once we have read the full twenty issues. Its just way too early to write off the story especially since we are still in the set up stage. The difference between this and RiD/MTMTE is that those other two stories have already gone through their set-up stages many months ago.
I think we do. Clearly you are willing to criticize but unable to take it yourself.
I’ve also read the UK comic from when it started in 1984 but that doesn’t make me any more right or wrong. We are all entitled to opinions but I don’t think this is the appropriate forum to openly criticize Simon Furmans work on his own blog.
I remember Star Wars fans complaining about The Phantom Menace yet it became the most successful.
Can we all go back to talking about the comic now please?
What you expect me to take what you said hands down? Come on now. I can take criticism just fine, but you weren’t criticizing my opinions you were putting words in my mouth and telling what I should and shouldn’t read. I also didn’t know simons blog was only allowed comments that praised his work. Hell I’d personnaly like to know what someone didn’t like about my work and why. And the tpm was a poor example. Success does’t mean quality. Most 90’s comics were trash but sold extremely well. Cleopatra was a crap movie, but didn’t it win the Oscar? Citizen Kane was beaten by how sweet is my valley. Last of the Mohicans was a classic novel, good luck trying to get through it. Now we can drop it and the topic can get back to the comic book. I’ve said what I’ve had to say on it. I’ll be back when 85 comes out, Or we could continue. I’ve been blocked and banned from other boards before. It’s up to you.
Okay, time out here. I’d like to draw a line under this. Sean’s entirely entitled to his opinion. But it is just his opinion, and I’ve just stated mine. Please don’t everyone else start jumping in here with both feet and no one should tell Sean to stop reading the book, especially when he’s previously stated he’s going to continue reading the book for the foreseeable. So please, calm heads. Deep breaths. If it starts getting personal or nasty I will delete posts and block senders. OK?
–Simon
I just want to say keep up the great work, which in my opinion, it is. I have followed your work since #56 and have never been disappointed. The payoff and the journey are always great. Thanks for the many years and here’s to many more!
Brent
Hey Simon, you have no idea how excited I am to have this continuation of the Marvel comic!! I also think you’ve found excellent and appropriate plot-threads to follow up on. (I also can’t believe Ultra Magnus had never been in the US comic! How did I not notice that?!?
And please, let Andrew, Stephen and the rest know what an absolutely stunning job they’re doing! I buy every cover. Now you have to do me a favor and get some back-up stories greenlit for the series with Geoff Senior on art!!! And what about annuals??? Let’s make this bigger, yeah?
I do have one question: As a fan of the series you did in the UK (I’m from the U.S. but have read the entire run of UK books) I was wondering if the continuity established there is reconcilable with this current run?
You’re already a winner in my book and this series has already taken precedence over every other Transformers iteration out there. You did it!!!
Ultra Magnus appeared in one issue of the U.S. comic – The Big Broadcast of 2006, which was an out of continuity adaptation of a season three cartoon episode, which doesn’t really count.
The only real problem Regeneration One has with the U.K. continuity that I can see right now is most of the Wreckers died during Time Wars. Sandstorm, Roadbuster, Rack n Ruin, Topspin and Twin Twist all died.
Simon, where is Twin Twist in Regeneration One anyway? Was he intentionally dropped, forgotten about or will he come back later somehow?
We all know that Transformers are killed that doesn’t always mean the end.
Whirl wasn’t seen with the Wreckers after Target 2006. Maybe he was killed in action before Prime went back to Cybertron.
Possibly it was decided after Inpactor died they wouldn’t let that happen again as they are too important. We know that the Autobots had the ability to bring back team mates by storing their personalities in crystals. They did this with Skids and co when Prime needed reinforcements on Earth and they built new bodies for them. They fallen Wreckers in Time Wars could have been brought back the same way.
Though I’m dropping in bits and pieces from the UK continuity, RG1 is a continuation of the US TF comic book series, in which we never previously (directly) referenced the UK stories (apart from a brief and un-expanded upon appearance by the Deathbringer mech), so these Wreckers are US-specific (despite the presence of Rack ‘n’ Ruin and the absence of Twin Twist). We can’t assume knowledge of the often convoluted UK continuity so we don’t. It’s just nods really. But I want to mix things up (hence the presence of Rack ‘n’ Ruin and the absence of Twin Twist).
–Simon
I like how you gave the humans names of past Tranformers creators. “Rob and Nel”.
I wish you had used Twin Twist 😦 Still, I am enjoying the comic very much. It just doesn’t seem like they are long enough. I wish everyone was a double issue.
bass and darren heres my theory the only way to permenantly kill a transformer is to throw him into the smelting pool!!! so until the rebirth of impactor(the best character to have died and stay dead regretfully) make mine m… oopps um whatever long live rg1
Impactor didn’t die in the U.S. continuity though, but even if there is an Impactor in the U.S. continuity remains to be seen. It would be cool if we saw him again in Regeneration One. And Impactor also died twice in the U.K. comics, remember.
I also like Leadfoot as a Wrecker in nod to the Michael Bay movies, but thankfully the actual G2 Leadfoot was used.
I like to think Whirl didn’t die in Marvel U.K. but was kicked out of the Wreckers. His MTMTE personality has become the definitive Whirl for me so even though the series are in no way connected, I now like to think of Marvel Whirl being more like MTMTE Whirl since Marvel Whirl didn’t get to have much characterisation in his short time.
On an unrelated note, there two things it would be cool to see in this continued RG1 stretch.
1) More of Blaster and Goldbug(well, Bumblebee now)’s buddy relationship. I know this happened before Simon took over, but their closeness was one memorable aspect of the early issues for me, and I remember writing some inane letter to Marvel when I was a kid about wanting to see Blaster back after Starscream wrecked him with the underbase.
2) Grimlock’s crown, from what I always think of as his alcoholic phase. Just because.
FYI, I’m not really expecting to see these, I just think it would be fun.
Actually, even if it were a slight nod to their friendship it would be great to see
.
On of those characters or things you mention will be making a comeback, mostly in the 3rd arc (#91-95). Tempting to make it Grimlock’s crown…
im assuming it will be blaster as goldbug/bbee already came back as a pretender(ive never liked the pretenders) i enjoyed headmasters and targetmasters but i draw the line at pretenders they were silly toys and outer shells were silly characters(silly hasbro) i dont know what you have got planned but prime should die and stay dead he always has been a bad desicion maker and coward do u want examples his suicide after losing in a computergame , surrendering to scorponok and i can think of lots of others but i dont want to rant about how much i hate prime. i think its funny how autobot and decepticon leaders have always had flaws(much like our leaders) that have stopped them from bringing there forces to victories the autobot leaders seem to have to much guilt and not enough self believe or stupidity such as grimlock the decepticon leaders spend to much time boasting about there plans for domination, anyway keep up the good work i only just found out yesterday that this series will be a limited run, what plans have you got once rg1 is sadly over
Let me guess. Grimlock “over-energizing” to stave off the effects of nucleon withdrawal, remembering his prior days of energon addiction when he sat around wearing crowns, grumbling about how he never caught that puny human (The Mechanic). Am I close??
Screw the haters Simon. i love this comic and its a childhood dream come true. I LOVE WHAT YOU AND THE TEAM ARE DOING!!!!
I know I said I was on hiatus till 85, but I have one more question. A simple yes or no, but something that’s been bugging me. Are you writing to the Trade?
Hi Simon
I was wondering that after regeneration one wraps up (I’d prefer that it didn’t actually) do you think there is any change you could convince IDW to finish up the War Within and Dreamwaves ongoing G1 series. I was enjoying both and they just stoped as they were picking up A LOT of steam. Pat Lee-what a jerk.
what after rg1 wraps up, really i thought this was an ongoing series hmmm im speechless um how many issues is it gonna be oh well
It will end at 100. Gutted too but it will give the story a proper ending now. But yes I will it could run and run too .
While the Dreamwave comics were getting better with each passing month, there are a lot of legal issues surrounding them. We aren’t even getting trades of issues that weren’t originally released as trades.
I think I would prefer a continuation of the 80s cartoon. Other companies have continued from the end of the cartoon such as the Botcon comics so perhaps a new comic set between season two and the movie which is a largely untold era.
I know about the legal mess that happened with Dreamwave, but I was really enjoying the run.
I agree with you 100% about a continuation that would occur after Rebirth (even though I hated thoes episodes) I’d like to see those transformers again, but we’ll probably get yet another goofy kids show instead. It seems to be all that Transformers (beyond the comics) are now.
Shouldn’t have been a reply. I know I said I was on hiatus till 85, but I have one more question. A simple yes or no, but something that’s been bugging me. Are writing to the Trade?
Everyone writes with at least the trade in mind. These days you have to (and yes, I know that slightly contradicts the earlier statement about RG1 being different to the current TF comic, but there are certain realities you just can’t avoid in today’s market). And 20 issues kind of broke down neatly into four five-issue arcs. But, I’m trying to make sure each individual issue has some story integrity of its own, and a character focus. And keep a macro 20-issue story flow going too.
Mr. Furman,
Page 12, Paragraph 3 of our mutually signed contract ensures I receive more screen time and more lines.
So far, I am not so convinced.
Ravage has been dispatched and is now watching your every move. Waiting for my next command.
Lets correct this minor oversight shall we?
Sincerely,
Soundwave
Hi Simon I just have a couple of questions too please if that’s ok.
When you wrote Generation 2 the creation matrix appeared again inside Prime but no official explanation was given to how he had in. In this new version does Prime still have it or was it destroyed along with Unicron?
Will we get to see any of the exclusive European or Japanese characters before the end such as Deathsaurus, Black Zarak etc?
And finally as the most anticipated battle in years is now upon us will we get to see the other one everyone craves for? I’m talking about Galvatron v Ultra Magnus!
Keep up the fantastic work!
I thought it was Soundwave v’s Blaster? 😈
Blaster at his original Marvel best again Soundwave would be pretty awesome. I would love Soundwave to survive the whole thing, as far as I can remember he is the only major character to survive the original run.
Maybe Simon will give us his Japanese upgrade, the all black Soundblaster!
i thought it was soundwave/ravage/lazerbeak/buzzaw/frenzy/rumble/ratbat/overkill/slugfest thrashing the daylights out of blaster/rewind/eject/steeljaw/grandslam whats this vs rubbish puttup now that would be an awesome battle thanks soundwave for gracing us with your presence here no doubt you are here to terminate any fleshings that keep telling that fleshing penscribe what to do when in fact he is just transcripting your glorious history 🙂
I think in this kind of story, such characters would be out of place. However, I don’t mind the G2 cameos. Those are a welcome addition. I understand that such characters won’t get a proper story or characterisation but they are fine as background characters or as generics. I can’t stand seeing generics in a comic when there’s so many characters with toys that are going underused. Rack n Ruin is fine though since he’s an established character.
Hopefully Galvatron will return. It would be wrong to just leave him under the ice. But we’ll see.
ps simon maybe u should put soundwave in his place by swapping the ink scribe droids blue and purple ink around !!!!!! dont worry about ravage let him chase u to a well jump over it and watch him fall down for about another 30- 40 breems(issues) dammit soundwave is doing something to my brain and regresing me to childhood(just for old time sakes print my letter give me a no-prize or i will ask that either ratchat or grimgrams takes over from mr soundwaves) sorry mr furman im acting like it was 84 again 🙂
Soundwave superior, Blaster inferior knockoff!
Ha ha ha!
100% correct there soundwave we should both be quiet before being informed that it says fleshing furmans blog and not soundwaves blog, wow who would have thought that this months blog would be just like the uk letters page all we need now is that smart ass(apologies for language) futuron to turn up and try to predict the future he must have eaten his circuts when he discovered his powers of prediction were incorrect, well to simon soundwave and the whole team at rg1 thankyou for letting us have so much feedback here ,SIMON YOU ARE A STAR, I TAKE MY HAT OFF TO YOU SIR
I miss the exposition caption boxes from the original Marvel comics. These added a lot to the story too. RG1 has them but only from characters in the comic. Here’s an example:
“The words mean nothing. He hears only the roar of explosion, sees only blinding light and terrible nothingness! Feels only… pain! Where he was one, now there are two! The author of all his suffering… is part of him! He — they fight Optimus Prime… each other… aboard… the ark! Yes — the Ark! He is aboard the Autobots’ spacecraft, in the very heart of the enemy camp! And his attacker… is Ratchet!”
It gives us insight into Megatron’s thoughts without him having to say or think anything. Now, a character in the story would have had to actually say that.
I would like to say that Sean made some good points ,and I have felt the same …well kind of . I have felt that there is “less ” in these issues ,but I understand reasons why .Like Simon have said comics have changed and you have to consider the Trade-paperbacks .So where Simon could build up a story over 16 issues ,he now has to have a beginning ,middle ,and conclusion in five ,that is harder to do then you might think .As for the Grimlock appearance ,lets face facts ,it was premature ,and done only because of IDW’s stupid “Dinobot Month ” promotion …am I wrong ??
Now my main problem I have been having with RG1 is the art .Now before anyone gets on my back ,I love Andy Wildman’s art ,I love the work he has been doing on he’s new book “Horizon ” ,but I feel his TF work has gone flat .Why you ask …the one thing that made his work so awesome in the day was his consistency ,almost like an perfect piece of animation .But in RG1 his bots have no consistency ,Springer in one panel will have a a different chest plate then in the next ,same with Roadbuster (Also he is supposed to have a driver seat in Jeep mode ) ,heads are different and so on .Yes this was always a problem in the TF comics since 1984 ,but never with Andy (which is why I love his work ) .Now before anyone think I am dissing Mr.Wildman’s work I am not ,the art is great ,his humans and backgrounds are eye-catching awesome ,and his bots are great ,just not consistent panel to panel . I don’t know what he used to use as reference back in the day ,but I wish he would go back to it .But like I have said he has so much on his plate now and I don’t expect him to remember every little detail of every Transformer .
Grimlock was always going to feature in #82. Dinobot Month didn’t even exist (as far as I knew) when Loose Ends was being mapped out. Don’t think we even had a release date. So no, Grimlock in #82 and it happening to be in Dinobot Month were kind of a coincidental synergy.
Cool ,did not know that .As a fan and not being on the inside it seemed too coincidental .On a side note it is my favorite part of #82 ,being a fan of Grimlock and all (which is all thanks to you ,before I really was not a fan of “Me Grimlock” and all ,you gave him depth )
So I went back and read your first US Marvel arc, just to see if my feelings were correct in you getting more on the page back in the day. I still feel I am, but that’s not what the post is about. While reading I found how similar your RG1 arc and your first marvel arc are. The first issue of the Marvel arc ends with Megatrons return. The first issue of RG1 ends with Megatrons return. Each issue ends with a surprise cliffhanger. In both stories Starscream is being controlled, or so we think. In both stories Ratchet plays a big part. Obviously he doesn’t play a huge part in RG1, but just as he was the foil in the Marvel arc he’s seemingly to be a foil for Megatron again here. Found that very interesting. Was this intentional?