TRANSFORMERS: THE DEFINITIVE G1 COLLECTION REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL PART 4

Bonus materials! Yes – each volume comes with all-new background material created especially for the Definitive Collection. Plenty of behind-the-scenes action with the likes of ‘Meanwhile, in the Offices of Marvel UK’ and ‘Creating The IDW-Verse’, plus Sketchbooks, Cover Galleries, Commentaries, Character Profiles, Story So Fars and more. With new input from the likes of me, Chris Ryall, Andrew Wildman, E.j. Su, James Roberts and many others, and in-depth creator profiles, each collection (as well as being part of the whole) is very much its own self-contained entity (with a contextual introduction). Where possible, we’re sourcing visual materials to go along with these features that are exclusive to the DefG1 collection – like Ted McKeever’s art for an early iteration of Hearts of Steel, part of my original pitch for RG1, or unseen Andrew Wildman cover sketch variants. We’re layering on the extra value with a trowel!

TRANSFORMERS: THE DEFINITIVE G1 COLLECTION REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL PART 3

My personal favourite ‘reason to be cheerful/excited/subscribe immediately. For the first time, all the UK black & white strips – published in Transformers UK #214-289, will be reprinted/collected in glorious full colour. Can’t tell you how long I’ve been pushing and hoping for a publisher to come in and get this material colourised. And thanks to Hachette this is finally happening. John-Paul Bove, he of Regeneration One and many other IDW/Transformers colouring gigs, is bringing his unique (chameleon-like) colouring skills to bear on classic strips like Aspects of Evil, Perchance to Dream, Out To Lunch and many more. And what’s more he’ll be colouring them as if we were back in the late 80s, in the style of the time (albeit fully digitally). Anyone who saw JP’s amazing colour work on Transformers: Regeneration One #0 (a multi-artist/story issue reflecting different eras and iterations of G1) will know how he goes the extra half-mile (and then some) to meld modern colouring techniques with the look and feel of the time. The third release, ‘The Primal Scream’ in the DefG1 series, features the first of this newly colourised material – but there’s more (much more) to come. This is a true exclusive/first for Transformers: The Definitive Collection – so for the whole G1 story, subscribe now! https://www.hachettepartworks.com/transformers-the-definiti…

TRANSFORMERS: THE DEFINITIVE G1 COLLECTION REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL PART 2

Continuing my discourse on what makes Hachette’s Transformers G1 collection so worth having, here’s your next Reason to be Cheerful: all the Dreamwave G1 material that saw print in single-issue form will be collected, including the rare Summer Special story, Welcome to the Jungle, and their ongoing G1 series. These stories have never before been collected. When we say ‘definitive’, we mean it.

To The Death Episode 13 – LIVE

To The Death Episode 13: “Hope For The Best…” is now LIVE and available to download/view. As Dryagin embarks on a fight he knows he can’t win, so he begins to pick at the story spun by the seemingly beneficent Deacon Snow. Trust no one, believe nothing, it’s a credo Dryagin’s lived by. Hope for the Best, plan for the worst. And that’s all she wrote. From Simon Furman and Geoff Senior. All episodes (so far) are available to view, worldwide, here: http://to-the-death.com/episodes/

TRANSFORMERS THE DEFINITIVE G1 COLLECTION – REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL!

PART 1! Thought I’d chat in more depth about this amazing Hachette Transformers G1 collection. The first volume (Target: 2006 – the books are released non-sequentially) is out now, in all good newsagents, and you can subscribe to the whole 80-volume set over at Hachette’s website, here: https://www.hachettepartworks.com/transformers-the-definiti…
So, why should you be air-punching with glee at this new set of hardback GNs? Part of my brief was to make this collection unique, which – given the amount of TF collections already out there in some shape or form – wasn’t automatically a given. There’s the basic things of course – hardback, spine art that builds up into one overall image, superb production values, bumper-sized editions, etc. But what makes it unique among other TF collections? Well, for starters, the collection is sequential, and – for the first time – the Marvel UK/US strip will appear in the order it was published in the original Marvel UK Transformers comic. In other words, the strip will go from UK originated to Marvel US strip in the same volume, giving you the sense of one through story (rather than UK collections or US collections). And then the end of the Marvel era will feed directly into Regeneration One to wrap up TF/MARVEL storyline. Okay, so, that’s reason to be cheerful #1. I’ll post #2 later today!

TO THE DEATH EPISODE 12 – LIVE

It’s time for answers in To The Death Episode 12, “Enter The Dryagin”, which explodes onto your smartphones, tablets and computer screens today – available to download/view worldwide (from the furtive minds of Simon Furman and Geoff Senior natch). Who are the Triumvirate (or rather, who were they?)? What does Deacon Snow want with Dryagin? What grisly fate awaits the 12 billion inhabitants of planet Earth? All (well, most) is revealed as our full tilt descent towards the finish line begins in earnest. Prepare to be shocked, stunned and thrilled in roughly equal measure as Dryagin’s past catches up with him in jaw-dropping, trouser-shattering fashion. All episodes (so far) are available to view via the To The Death website – and our Xmas discount (TTD15SUB) remains in full force if you wish to subscribe. http://to-the-death.com/episodes/

ORBITAL SIGNING – TF G1

Transformers: The Definitive G1 Collection – Hachette’s superlative TF Partworks HB book collection (80 volumes no less!) gets its nationwide (full) launch in January, and we kick things off in some style with a signing at Orbital Comics in London on Saturday January 14th. The first three releases (books are released in non-consecutive order) will all be available – so come along and get your copies of Target: 2006, Stormbringer and The Primal Scream (featuring the first of the newly coloured – by John-Paul Bove – UK b/w strip) signed. I’ll be there, along with a host of TF-UK artists (including, so far, Jeff Anderson and Stephen Baskerville – more to be announced). And while I’m at it – have a great Christmas/Holidays everyone! Cheers!

TO THE DEATH EPISODE 11 – LIVE

He’s mad, bad, dangerous to know… and he’s a fish. Killatoa makes his full debut in To The Death Episode 11 (“Killatoa” – hey why not milk it?), which is now LIVE and available to view/download on the site. http://to-the-death.com/episodes/ The action (and bodycount) goes into overdrive, as our newest cast member (and all round badass) cuts a swathe through, well, the rest of the cast. It’s full throttle carnage from (virtual) cover to (virtual) cover, but in between still more stuff is revealed about what’s really going on with Deacon Snow and White Noise… and his plans for Dryagin. All episodes so far are still available to view/download, worldwide – so get cracking and nab yourself a discount subscription (TTD15SUB) to the whole lot.

TO THE DEATH 10: “ASPHODEL”

The past comes back to haunt Dryagin with a vengeance, in Episode 10 of To The Death, now LIVE and available to download/view on the site. In “Asphodel”, Simon Furman and Geoff Senior‘s new future shocker goes into overdrive, as secrets (and the shocking connection between Deacon Snow and the Triumvirate) are revealed. And waiting in the wings… Killatoa! Episodes 1-9 are also available to view, worldwide, by visiting http://to-the-death.com/episodes/ – and the first episode is FREE-TO-VIEW. If you haven’t already checked out this widescreen digital delight, what are you waiting for?

TO THE DEATH: “HUNTER-HUNTED”

To The Death reaches its knife-edge-sharp halfway point, with the full release of Episode 9 (now LIVE and available to download/view). In “Hunter-Hunted” Dryagin and Kraken square off for the last time, in a battle Dryagin can’t win… without help. And, meanwhile, another pivotal character makes his (its?) debut, launching To The Death’s most harrowing Episodes yet. Wait till you meet… Killatoa! Twists, turns and gut-punch shocks abound. And from here, the ride only gets wilder. And don’t forget, Episodes 1-8 are still available to view, and Episode 1 is FREE-TO-VIEW. http://to-the-death.com/episodes/