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TRANSFORMERS: GENERATION 1 #5
Recommended (7/10)
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Dreamwave Productions
Writer: Chris Sarracini
Pencils: Pat Lee
Inks: Rob Armstrong & Erik Sander
Backgrounds: Edwin Garcia
Colors: Ramil Sunga, Gary Yeung & Alan Wang
Letters: Dreamer Design
Editor: Matt Moylan
Price: $2.95 US |
When this limited series began, the creator hooked me with their new, more mature take on the title characters and the way people reacted to them. Though those elements still linger, this issue, and the one that preceded it, look back at the property's simpler sci-fi/super-hero roots. It's still a fun read, though, and the art remains as stunning as ever, if not moreso.
Optiumus Prime realizes that the Autobots' battle against the Decepticons in San Francisco is a losing prospect, as without the towering Superion, the Autobots are hopelessly outgunned. And there's no chance of backup arriving in time, as the remaining eight Autobots are in the Canadian wilderness, trying to fight the technological and biological virus that's consuming everything in its path. Meanwhile, Spike learns the truth about his father's death and the Transformers' role in it.
Pat Lee brings the immensity of these robot characters to life in brilliant detail. His penchant for perspective is a key factor to pulling it off. The detail he brings to each of these unusual characters is stunning, and that meticulous eye is matched in Garcia's impressive backgrounds. The colors also add to the detail, and bring a vibrant energy to the book as well. When it comes to comics, I'm there to check out the writing first, but on the rare occasions when I'd check out books only for the art, this title would qualify.
Though it may be derivative, the eight Autobots fighting the virus made for fun, bright storytelling. Bumblebee's cornball entrance works, as does Mirage's pseudo-science babble. Sure, I know it's silly, but it works in this context. Sarracini manages to find some room for the inherent innocence of the Transformers concept, and in the end, acknowledging that simpler quality will likely make for a better balanced series as a whole.
Nevertheless, I've seen the lighter side of these characters before; it's the darker plot elements that really caught my attention. Fortunately, while Sarracini doesn't focus on them here, he doesn't forget them either. He seems to be building up to an interesting climax, in which the conspiratorial and emotional elements which got this story going in the first will reign supreme.
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