TF Ongoing #4 Review (SPOILERS)

[Yaya]

If ever there were a statement issue to reaffirm my faith in the writing talents of Mike Costa, this is it.

Simply put, this is the most intelligently written TF comic to date since Roche gave us the Kup spotlight. For the past three years, I have been begging IDW to push the envelope that much further, and reach out to the readers who approach life from a bit more of a mature angle than what we are usually given from a toy-based comic. Costa has answered that challenge in spades here.

To start, Thundercracker's internal musings are the perfect example of how to use inner monologue effectively. If I wasn't a fan of TC before, I am now. Costa is able to take that ambiguity of feelings that Thundercracker possesses and that the tech specs and McCarthy practically pushed into our faces, and delves much deeper into TC's pysche to explain what that very ambiguity is based on. Clearly, it's based on an intellect that appreciates, in a philosophical way, the finer points of life. In this sense, TC actually comes off as being so much more superior to his fellow Decepticons, Megatron included. In fact, he himself comes to that self-realization of Megatron's real weakness.

And somehow, Costa is able to sandwhich in between this both plot progression and nods to past continuity ala Nick Roche. For example, Swindle's look of abject horror as he makes out, who else, but his nemesis Ultra Magnus making his way over the horizon. Swindle is yet another expertly written character here, as you can see Hotrod unsuspectingly about to get, well, swindled.

I really can't say enough good about this issue. But I'm going to say more anyway. Don is the man. If anyone can convey a sense of power to the TF, it's him. Another great job.

Give it an "A+", the perfect example of what I want out of a TF comic book. IF LSOTW and this issue are any indication of what IDW has got in store for us, it's a damn good time to be a TF fan.

[Guest]

I'm thinking this fourth issue is sort of a 'make or break' moment for this ongoing. I'm happy with what we've got so far, but things could go south quickly (ala quicksand) if Autobots are still hiding in caves.

So, are the Autobots still hiding in caves?

[Yaya]

Nope.

[Best First]

Simply put, this is the most intelligently written TF comic to date since Roche gave us the Kup spotlight.

Nah. It was competant, which is a step up for TF most IDW stuff in the last two years, but it's still a pretty average comic. It was nowhere near as good as, say Spotlight: Hardhead, to pick a random example.

I know you can give it the three year wah wah wah but a lot of this still teeters on Hotrod being a totoally different character to who he has been prevously portrayed as.

Bit of TC's monlougue were lovely - bit's were dross.

In terms of the comics out this week this was no better than, say, Thunderbolts. Not terrible, not A + either.

Oh. and yes half the Autobots are still hiding in caves. If this is so good misrepresenting it is uneeded yes?

[Yaya]

Simply put, this is the most intelligently written TF comic to date since Roche gave us the Kup spotlight.

Nah. It was competant, which is a step up for TF most IDW stuff in the last two years, but it's still a pretty average comic. It was nowhere near as good as, say Spotlight: Hardhead, to pick a random example.

I know you can give it the three year wah wah wah but a lot of this still teeters on Hotrod being a totoally different character to who he has been prevously portrayed as.

Bit of TC's monlougue were lovely - bit's were dross.

In terms of the comics out this week this was no better than, say, Thunderbolts. Not terrible, not A + either.

Oh. and yes half the Autobots are still hiding in caves. If this is so good misrepresenting it is uneeded yes?

Aw, come on. Just "competent"? "Pretty average"? For a TF comic, it was upper echelon.

Of course, a good TF comic does tend to be on par with average 'other' comics, I agree. But I can't say there have been many IDW issues as good as this one. Maybe five or six as good. Which would you say are better?

I can count Spotlight Shockwave, Spotlight Kup, Spotlight Hardhead, Spotlight Cyclonus, Spotlight Metroplex, the last two issues of LSOTW and.... that's about it.

I didn't see any Autobots hiding it caves. They moved to that petrified forest and are building an ark.

[Best First]

Which would you say are better?

Most if not all of the -ations and at least half the spotlights. Not to mention the recent wreckers stuff.

Compared to McCarthy's guff yes this was a step up - but it's not stellar by any stretch and proclaiming it as such is just dissuades improvement.

Showed promise? yes. Upper-echelon. No.

I didn't see any Autobots hiding it caves. They moved to that petrified forest and are building an ark.

Er, no. Hotrod's guys are out of the caves, as they have been. The rest are still there unless you have off-camera insight the rest if us don't.

On the contents i would have liked to see Magnus kick off - i reckon he could have taken them.

[bumblemusprime]

This comic, and Yaya's reaction, encapsulate what is so frustrating for me about Costa's direction.

Because parts of this were good. Damn good characterization. Thundercracker's monologue did a great job of encapsulating what someone said on the IDW forum a while ago, along the lines of: "The TFs are like Ents. Very powerful, but stupidly mired in their traditional ways of thinking."

However, it's laid over a glacial story that goes nowhere in this issue. So what we essentially get is a really good Mosaic, on top of what could be another Mosaic about Hot Rod's ambition.

Man, I want PLOT. Good characters, good dialogue, but nothing is going anywhere. This is one reason why I was utterly satisfied by the Furman run. Yeah, it had its cheese moments, but it gave me a real action fix. I don't need my TF comics to have a deep exploration of the human condition. I have a shelf full of Vonnegut, Salinger, Toni Morrison, Zora Neal Hurston, Michael Chabon and Tolkien. It would be nice if TF comics, along the way, provided some depth and insight. But they don't have to. I don't get them for that reason. I get them to see Decepticons trying to destroy the world and Autobots trying to stop them.

In the same vein, I'd love to hand Costa a Furman plot and let him script it. He's really got a gift for dialogue. But unless something happens, I'll keep reading these in the aisles of the comic store and putting them back on the shelf.

[Yaya]

This comic, and Yaya's reaction, encapsulate what is so frustrating for me about Costa's direction.

Because parts of this were good. Damn good characterization. Thundercracker's monologue did a great job of encapsulating what someone said on the IDW forum a while ago, along the lines of: "The TFs are like Ents. Very powerful, but stupidly mired in their traditional ways of thinking."

However, it's laid over a glacial story that goes nowhere in this issue. So what we essentially get is a really good Mosaic, on top of what could be another Mosaic about Hot Rod's ambition.

Man, I want PLOT. Good characters, good dialogue, but nothing is going anywhere. This is one reason why I was utterly satisfied by the Furman run. Yeah, it had its cheese moments, but it gave me a real action fix. I don't need my TF comics to have a deep exploration of the human condition. I have a shelf full of Vonnegut, Salinger, Toni Morrison, Zora Neal Hurston, Michael Chabon and Tolkien. It would be nice if TF comics, along the way, provided some depth and insight. But they don't have to. I don't get them for that reason. I get them to see Decepticons trying to destroy the world and Autobots trying to stop them.

In the same vein, I'd love to hand Costa a Furman plot and let him script it. He's really got a gift for dialogue. But unless something happens, I'll keep reading these in the aisles of the comic store and putting them back on the shelf.

At the risk of making BF puke up a lung....there are "plot-driven" stories and there are "character-driven" stories. (Sorry, BF. I just had to say that. But hey, at least I didn't use "cookie-cutter" though. )

Furman is definitely a plot-driven kind of guy, and if that's to your liking, I can understand where you're coming from, man. I really do. But see, I'm a character-driven kind of guy.

Ideally, I want to see this. A character-driven first half, and a plot-driven second-half kickass conclusion. That's the perfect story framework for me. You know what is a perfect example of that. Furmans Matrix Quest. It was all getting to know the characters, then that awesome conclusion where Nightbeat saves the day.

Now, by the time the plot really takes off, you feel more is a stake. For example, now I will be very curious to see what ensues when TC gets back to Megs. Their conflict will actually mean something now.

Long live Costa! Sorry. I will say though, being a good writer means finding that balance. The plot has languished one issue too long, ala Infiltration, and I agree, Costa needs to get things moving.

[bumblemusprime]

Thing is, there is no story being driven by the characters here.

Huckleberry Finn is a character-driven story, because the main question is not so much about whether Huck and Jim will escape north as whether or not they will be conquered by the rest of society or maintain their independent spirit. Nonetheless, the book is full of narrow escapes and con artists and bizarre encounters that keep me on the edge of my seat wondering what is going to happen next.

Costa's work doesn't do that. It's just "shiny character moment" and then back to the rather plodding narrative of some Autobots who might get off-planet.

Meh.

[Yaya]

I guess you could look at it that way.

But I think the makings of a plot are there and the pieces are in place: After losing his closest friend, Prime surrenders to an army that has no intention of approaching these invaders in a diplomatic fashion. Hotrod sees this as folly, and rather than blindly following suit, decides to take matters into his own hands. He decides to (logically) abandon Earth, taking many like-minded Autobots with him. He goes so far as to kindle an alliance with Decepticons who on the surface harbor similar feelings. Meanwhile, at the behest of Prowl, Magnus comes to Earth to evaluate the situation, and to his chagrin, finds a Hotrod bordering on treason to the Autobot cause. What's more horrifying to Magnus is that Hotrod has allied himself with one of the biggest violators of the galaxy-recognized Tyrest Accord, the very doctrine that Magnus has been sworn in to uphold. The Decepticons stranded on Earth fall back on this clever bot who really is the only one capable enough to get them what they want. Unbeknownst to his new "ally" Hotrod, Swindle sets things in motion to ensure the Cons get the heavy hitter they need: Menasor. Thundercracker sees it all unfolding with crystal clarity and feels remorse for the Autobots. Remorse because, though the war is over and the Autobots have won, they find themselves in the worst of circumstances: divided, hiding in caves, and about to get an energon sword stabbed in their back.

And of course, there's the whole hiding in caves thing.

Nevertheless, I still think the plot is no slower than Infiltration. It certainly isn't as slow as AHM.

[bumblemusprime]

Oh yeah, there is definitely a hint of it, but so far there's not even a threat. They might not get home. The Decepticons might get up to some trouble. That's different from Infiltration, in which several human lives were endangered and only one Autobots was willing to try and help them. The humans killed Ironhide but thus far have shown little incentive to hurt Prime, or do anything that would cause irreparable harm.

Infiltration had a lot of things at risk, it was just too slow. It would have been better off as a four or five-issue series. Costa's story isn't that kind of story, you know "I saw what it was trying to do, it just went on too long." Costa is trying to write a story in which interesting characterization will distract you from how not much is happening until he decides to speed it up.

That type of story is everywhere, but it doesn't really suit the episodic format, and Costa has not included many of the things that add stakes to a "slow burner"--like a serious mystery, heavy foreshadowing, or one character's Slow Descent Into Madness.

[Yaya]

That's different from Infiltration, in which several human lives were endangered and only one Autobots was willing to try and help them. The humans killed Ironhide but thus far have shown little incentive to hurt Prime, or do anything that would cause irreparable harm.

Infiltration was waaaay slower and waaay less intense. At times, it was outright yawn-inducing. I mean, the stakes were three humans, and three of the issues seemed like it was just Ratchet being chased by various Decepticons down a freeway.

Ratchet was done well, but that's because he was the focus of like four issues out of the six.

Costa is trying to write a story in which interesting characterization will distract you from how not much is happening until he decides to speed it up.

If anything is going to distract me, let it be that then. I want characterization. The payoff in terms of story always comes later in this regard, and when it comes, it means so much more.

I'm interested in hearing what Jack has to say about this. Haven't heard from him, and I kind of use his assessment as a gauge to tell me that I'm not actually full of ****.

[Best First]

At the risk of making BF puke up a lung....there are "plot-driven" stories and there are "character-driven" stories. (Sorry, BF. I just had to say that. But hey, at least I didn't use "cookie-cutter" though. )

don't worry about it - i reassure myself by virtue of the fact you don't seem to know what these terms mean

charcter driven and plot driven are thrown about on comics forums in the similar way to political correctness in low brow right wing press.

It's still an average comic.

[Yaya]

COOKIE CUTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTER!!!!!!!

[Jack Cade]

I've done a 100-word review for my blog.

Basically, I think it was a really good issue, but it feels a bit like a stopgap. Costa is distracting us from a not-very-exciting plot with dazzling character work. It's great that he can do this, but if he doesn't get a grip on the pace of events then it'll wear thin quickly.

[bumblemusprime]

Jack Jon, I had no idea you were such a literary man.

[BB Shockwave]

A+ ? really... It was not as bad as #5, but that's an overstatement.

IMHO, it was really-really dragged out. Just like AHM - not much happens in 22 pages. TC's philosophycal musings were fun to read for like, 2 pages - but it was overdone after that.

And while I like some minor character perks in the comic, the whole situtation, the state the Bots and Cons and humans are in, just feels... stupid. Very stupid. A good writer would have quickly washed away the Shame McCarthy scenario with a sweep of his hand and started anew. The whole concept that a race that has been warring for millions of years is now without guidance because its leaders have died/stepped down is incredibly silly. It's like, saying that the assassination of Hitler and Churchill would have stopped World War II. We have seen in TWW Dark Ages that there are always plenty of wannabee leaders to pick up where the others stopped. And besides - were the TFs at war because Megatron always poured his trash at Prime's lawn? Is it so that without Megatron, the Autobots see no further reason to stop a faction who is violently overtaking and colonizing worlds?

Still, #4 is still much better then #5. That comic was utter, utter sh*t. I decided to stop reading the ongoing at that point.

And of course, there's the whole hiding in caves thing.

I have a feeling that after the US goverment telling people that the biggest baddest terrorists are still successfully evading capture by hiding in caves since 2001, some americans - Costa included - have started to believe that you can hide from every type of high-tech surveillance equipment by hiding in caves.