transformers idw

This is based on THIS reading order, rather than the release order.
https://www.reddit.com/r/idwtransformers/comments/aioqd1/idw_g1_transformers_reading_order_updated_2018/

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The Transformers: Infiltration (7 issues)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: E. J. Su
Date: October 2005 - June 2006
Summary: Three humans, Hunter O'Nion, Jimmy Pink, and Verity Carlo, discover that giant robots disguised as vehicles roam the Earth, fighting in a secret war. The Autobot who saved them, Ratchet, gets in trouble for breaking protocol and revealing himself to the humans, even if it was to save their lives. In objection, the humans decide to help the Autobots get information from an abandoned Decepticon base. Meanwhile, Starscream attempts to overthrow Megatron via use of a super-powerful energy source called Ore-13.

This is a general breezy first storyline, introducing a few of the new aspects we can expect for the coming years. The main thing of note is how seriously the "robots in disguise" angle is taken, especially with the Decepticons, who are now basically an undercover military group. The story is a bit hand-hold-y, but its also kind of not hand-hold-y enough? It painstakingly details a lot of the stuff most people would already know, but glosses over a few important details. Its also a very obvious first part to a story arc, so most of the plot threads aren't fully concluded here.

The Transformers, aside from Ratchet and Bumblebee, aren't given a lot of screen time to work with due to this being introductory, and Optimus Prime doesn't even show up until the last page of the last issue (which is something I like). The humans are well characterized, though, which is good since most of the story focuses on them. It is super amusing, however, that the first story in this new continuity basically boils down to "Starscream tries to kill Megatron, it doesn't work".

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The Transformers: Stormbringer (4 issues)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: Don Figueroa
Date: July 2006 - October 2006
Summary: Above the near dead planet of Cybertron, Jetfire and the Technobots are alerted to a signal coming from the planet. On investigation, the team are taken down by a cult of Decepticons lead by Bludgeon. Jetfire quickly learns that Bludgeon seeks to revive Thunderwing, a monstrous being that nearly brought down both sides of the conflict, using "super Energon". An SOS from the Technobot's ship reaches Optimus Prime, who rallies the Wreckers into fighting the unstoppable menace.

This is where the good stuff happens. In addition to not featuring any human characters at all, Stormbringer also has a cast mostly consisting of obscure C-list transformers, including my favorite subset, the Pretenders. It even comes up with a brand new, and disturbing, take on the Pretender shells. It also introduces the Wreckers into the story, who will become much, MUCH more important as things go on. It's weird that Thunderwing is introduced so early into this continuity's lifespan, though, even if he is one of Simon Furman's pet favorite characters. Like, he feels like a more "end of story arc" deal than one of the first villains, but whatever. He's also not really a "character" in this, but more a walking disaster that also acts as PTSD for basically everyone who was at the battle for Thunderhead Pass, including Prime and Megatron. It's established that Thunderwing was originally a scientist, and his attempt to create Pretender shells caused him to give into madness and become a horrible monster.

The art in this issue is really good, with some great new character designs for the Pretender Decepticons, especially on Bludgeon himself. The main issues I have are an anti-climax with Bludgeon, who gets "trapped in the prison of his own mind", and the fact that it feels both too short and too long at the same time? A lot of scenes are good for the plot, but do kind of feel either under developed or too drawn out. The most interesting part of the whole thing is the commentary on what war can do to our planet, with Cybertron's death being caused directly by over-use of resources during the Autobot/Decepticon war. I also enjoy Optimus Prime getting to be a character with regrets and actual motivations, too. Basically, this is the baseline the rest of the comics are going to need to beat.

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Shockwave (one-off)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: Nick Roche
Date: September 2006
Summary: Shockwave, in an attempt to avoid an Energon shortage, begins his Regenesis project, with the goal of seeding Energon on other planets - one of which being a prehistoric Earth. Unfortunately for him, the Dynobots show up, looking for revenge.

This is the first of the "Spotlight" comics, one-off issues focusing on a single Transformer character, as well as setting up for new plotlines to be built on. This issue focuses on Shockwave, who will become one of the, let's say, more defining elements of the IDW comics. The story is a double homage to both the backstory given to Shockwave and the Dinobots in the comics, as well as to Beast Wars. The main focus of the story is Shockwave's entirely "logical" mind, and how he is unable to deal with the fundamental chaos of the universe, as shown by his carefully crafted plan being torn down (as far as this comic shows, at least) by the brutish and emotional Dinobots.

As mentioned, there are fun references to Beast Wars throughout, like the fact the Dynobots become the Dinobots because they need to shield themselves from the massive amounts of Energon radiation Shockwave has created. The ending of the comic matches the old Marvel comics perfectly, as The Dinobots and Shockwave are trapped on Earth, functionally dead for the time, for millions of years. This is a genuinely good issue with some fun banter between the Dinobots, but the main entertaining aspect is how Shockwave's appearance is tied directly to Beast Wars, something that will only come up again at the absolute end of the series. This is also our first appearance of Nick Roche as artist, something he will continue to be for years, and one of the most popular ones at that. The art in this (and the next issue he does) are mostly just a bit mediocre, however.

Oh yeah, the story ends with Megatron ordering Bludgeon to look in on Shockwave's research, which leads directly to Stormbringer.

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Nightbeat (one-off)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: MD Bright
Date: October 2006
Summary:  Autobot detective Nightbeat gets a lead on one of the "big three" mysteries of Cybertron: The disappearance of the first Ark. However, with his lead vanishing after the mysterious death of its seller, the event becomes a mystery on its own, one that Nightbeat, unfortunately, will forget.

This issue tries to take the form of a slightly noir-esque tale, but it kind of falls flat. In actuality, this comic is a set-up for things that will happen YEARS down the road, a storyline Furman set up but unfortunately(?) never got to write himself. The main thing of note is the first mention of the Dead Universe, which is presented in incredibly vague terms and with all major players relating to it kept in secret. In order to make sure this remains a surprise for later, Nightbeat has his memory erased at the end of the story, in a pretty bog standard twist that's honestly more disappointing than anything.

For the comic itself... it ain't great. The artwork is rough, with some wonky perspectives and drab coloring. Nightbeat, at the least, is a fun character to read, which he should be since he's basically the only character with dialog in the whole thing. The story tries to have a bit of a horror edge to it in places, but it doesn't really work out. The Dead Universe is definitely an interesting concept at this stage of its development, but given what I know about later stuff, I'm wondering how long that will hold out. This is generally what I'd call the first "rough spot" in the comics, but its unfortunately a bit too vital to skip over.

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Hot Rod (one-off)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: Nick Roche
Date: November 2006
Summary: Hot Rod breaks into a Decepticon prison in order to save a friend. As he does, however, memories to the one time he failed start pouring in...

While Spotlight Shockwave and Nightbeat primarily exist to set up future story elements, this one is actually a direct character piece on Hot Rod. It details how, on a mission to obtain a powerful artifact called The Magnificence, all of his squad gets murdered. It deals with his guilt, and how he wears his excitable, daredevil personality as a sort of mask (though he absolutely is those things). The setting is fun too, as Hot Rod breaks through all the defenses of this max security prison in a way that makes it look easy.

The deaths of Hot Rod's comrades is our first real instance of "horrible murder" in this series, something that will become more of a thing, both for good and for ill (and for very ill). Of course, the most important thing to note is the member of Hot Rod's squad that survived and is saved: Dealer. Or rather, Doubledealer. If you can't tell, the guy is a double agent, a fact made incredibly obvious at the end of the issue. Doubledealer is also the one who killed the rest of the squad, and all of this is actually just a mission to reclaim the Magnificence. Speaking of, that's a weird thing that won't be important until a decade after this comic was released! Anyway, this one is just good.

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Sixshot (one-off)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: Rob Ruffolo
Date: December 2006
Summary: Sixshot attempts to track down the missing Terrorcons, leading him to a planet where he must fight a mythical and dangerous force.

This one definitely... exists. While its nice to see Sixshot get used in any form of media, and he is given a pretty good personality in this issue, it's also just kind of a nothing story. Not a BAD one, mind you, just a bit nothing. Of course, this is also another set up for future stories, as it introduces the Reapers, characters who destroy planets to stop war, because. They look cool, though. The most interesting aspect of this story is the introspection Sixshot goes through, as we get to learn about his character.

Sixshot is a killing machine who doesn't have much in his life outside of killing, but has a sympathetic side. He is brought to the Reapers in an attempt to save people he considers friends, and he refuses to join the Reapers when they offer him to join, despite them being all like him. Speaking of the Reapers, they all have really good designs, I really like the space wizard, but they are incredibly stupid and incredibly underused. They're so dangerous that they've apparently gone down in myth, but they're also idiots who think that destroying planets is the best way to stop war. They only show up in another thing like, a few storylines from now, and only because Sixshot ends up on Earth later. There's also some minor art quibbles, like how the Terrorcons are mostly drawn in incredibly static poses that look lifted from the old Marvel sourcebooks. This one is definitely the first truly skippable issue.

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Ultra Magnus (one-off)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: Robby Musso
Date: January 2007
Summary: After arresting Decepticon con-man/weapons peddler Swindle, Ultra Magnus is tempted by him with information about the powerful Scorponok.

This issue has some minor stuff that will be important much later on, most notably the "Tyrest Accord" that Ultra Magnus upholds. The whole thing is more of a character study, but also has set-up for later things, much like with Hot Rod's spotlight issue. This one is a bit less good, but I'd still qualify it as being one of the better stories so far. The theme of even the most uptight law enforcer being tempted by a criminal is fun, and its what the story bookends itself with.

Scorponok is interesting as he's basically portrayed as what the Decepticons do in the initial issues, but more. He hides behind hundreds of layers of security, developing tech on specific planets, before destroying them once the tech is finished. It's a fun idea and will come up more later on. There's fun nods to Scorponok's Headmaster origin, with his partner at this time being his Headmaster, Zarak, who Scorponok seems to weirdly care a lot about before he's dead. Considering later stuff I'm gonna be honest and say that they were probably a couple. Anyway, this issue is fine, good but not a whole lot to actually talk about.

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Soundwave (one-off)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: Marcelo Matere
Date: March 2007
Summary: On orders from Megatron, Soundwave spies on Bludgeon as he goes to Earth. However, things don't go as smoothly as he hoped.

This issue is a big throwback to Generation 1 Transformers. It takes place on Earth in 1984, the year Transformers was birthed, Soundwave matches his original design perfectly out of the gate, and they even work in Mt. St. Helens, the volcano where the Autobots made their base in the original cartoon. With all this fanservice, is there a good story to hold it up? Eh, it's fine. My main issue is with how Furman characterizes Soundwave, who's portrayed as more self-serving than I think he has been in any other continuity, though don't quote me on that.

Soundwave states that he knows about all of Shockwave's research uncovered by Bludgeon, but hasn't told Megatron for... some reason. When he makes himself known to Bludgeon, under the assumption that the Ore-13 mining they're doing is purely for greed, Soundwave basically says he'll keep it from Megatron if he gets to be in on it. When they tell him they actually want to bring back Thunderwing, there's an interesting bit where Soundwave attempts to stop them, which kind of covers the less black-and-white moralities that become a theme of the entire comic. Of course, this ends with him stuck in tape player mode for 20 years, and Ravage and Laserbeak stuck under a mountain until a shady group manages to uncover them. Again, this is mostly set-up for future stories, but I'd honestly call it the weakest of the Spotlights because it has some of the worst characterization. I'm unsure how SOundwave is going to fit into the rest of this, but I definitely hope its in a tangible and fun way.

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The Transformers: Escalation (6 issues)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: E. J. Su
Date: November 2006 - April 2007
Summary: While attempting to bring the humans home, Ironhide and Sunstreaker end up caught in a trap from a mysterious organization known as the Machination. While Ironhide, Jimmy, and Verity get away, Sunstreaker and Hunter aren't so lucky. Before the Autobots can even deal with that mystery, the Autobots need to prevent Megatron from starting a massive war in Russia, but find themselves ill equipped to deal with an Ore-13 powered Megatron. While the battle rages, Ironhide, Ratchet, Verity, and Jimmy follow their one lead to where Sunstreaker and Hunter may be.

Like any good major storyline, there are a lot of things going on here. Two different storylines are basically going on at the same time, the investigation into Sunstreaker/Hunter's disappearance, and the battle in Russia. Fun note, Furman apparently didn't know that Russians weren't being called Soviets anymore. Anyway, the battle in Russia is where the real fun is at, as it, as per the name, keeps escalating. It really shows off how powerful Ore-13 is, as Megatron nearly beats Optimus to death with his own hands, and also hilariously pukes up energy vomit as a weapon. I'm pretty sure that last part isn't supposed to be funny, but it really is.

As established in previous issues, the Decepticons have the ability to create human facsimiles, which is how they plan to start the war in Russia, and subsequently the rest of the world. The 'Cons are pretty bastardish in the early issues of the comics, I kind of like their subterfuge-y plans. The stuff with the humans is slightly less interesting (partly because I know the outcome and boy is it unsatisfying, through no fault of Furman), but it does set up an intriguing mystery, and the introduction of a SECOND shadowy organization is interesting too. A lot of things beyond that mystery are set up as well, as we not only get the first hint at a major antagonist, but Nightbeat, Hot Rod, and newcomer Hardhead are introduced to the main Earth cast.

The storyline is mostly just fighting, however, but it's generally pretty good fighting. As mentioned, the fight between Megatron and Prime is probably the best single part of the comic so far, and it definitely shows Prime's clever side as he uploads his mind into a remote computer in order to secure a victory. Also fun is that they use a plot point from Stormbringer, that Ore-13 runs out very quickly, to beat Megs. I guess I shouldn't be surprised at the team bringing their A-Game for not only a major storyline, but one made JUST before Transformers was about to hit a boom period thanks to the movie. That's right, we're about to get out of the slums of the Unicron Trilogy and into the Transformers Golden Age.

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New Avengers/Transformers (4 issues)
Writer: Stuart Moore
Artist: Tyler Kirkham
Date: September 2007 - December 2007
Summary: The New Avengers, Captain America, Wolverine, Luke Cage, and Spider-Man, investigate a war in Latvaria, only to discover that Dr. Doom isn't behind all this, but instead the Decepticons! Can the combined forces of the Avengers and the Autobots defeat the powered-up Decepticons, stop a nuclear war, AND save a captured Spidey in just one night!?

Yep, we have an incredibly unnecessary Avengers crossover in the middle of this arc. When I say unnecessary, I mean REALLY unnecessary, as this thing only affects a single issue we will be covering very, very shortly. It's really hard to say anything about this because, well, not much happens. The story is a bit of a mess, with things just kind of happening (For example, Dr. Doom teams up with Megatron in issue 3, and the truce is broken like, three panels after this), and it ultimately feels like an elaborate excuse to reference the old Marvel comic where Spider-Man cameo'd. And yes, because of the single issue mentioned previously, this IS part of the IDW canon and not some splinter timeline.

I can't say it's poorly written though? Moore had definitely read all the IDW comics up to this point, and it introduces Ramjet to Earth with an interesting role. Iron Man shows up in a giant robot, and that's probably the first and only cool thing Iron Man has done. Oh yeah, Captain America apparently can't recognize F-22 Raptors, one of the most basic modern jet planes, which is hilarious. The art is a bit wonky, you can tell the artist was good at drawing Marvel characters, not that used to drawing Transformers. Like, Ramjet is drawn practically identical to his toy, complete with his trademark conehead being flipped down. It's just a weird, weird thing that really didn't need to happen. You can pretty safely skip this one.

Oh yeah, the main plot basically just involves Megatron using Spider-Man as a juicer, which is very funny as well.

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Kup (one-off)
Writer: Nick Roche
Artist: Nick Roche
Date: April 2007
Summary: Trapped on an alien world for years, Kup and his friend Outback defend themselves every night from the horrible zombies that seek to "get" them.

This is it. This is the first sign of what the IDW comics would become. This story is emotional, terrifying, and artistically creative, it's probably the single best issue we'll see for a long while. Kup, for non-Transformers readers, is an elderly Autobot war hero, having traveled the universe and done tons of incredible things. In this issue it's established that Kup is the mentor to nearly every Autobot hero from the war. And this is contrasted with how he is currently, because as you might expect, the above summary isn't wholly accurate.

Kup is afflicted by a radiation poison that causes him to hallucinate, Outback is a half exploded corpse, and the zombies that Kup fights (using Outback's severed arm, mind you) are actually just an Autobot rescue team wearing antique anti-radiation suits. While Kup is the ostensible focus of this issue, the real main character is Springer, leader of the Wreckers. Springer wants to save Kup, not because they need to or even should, but because he feels he owes the old man for everything he's done. This unfortunately results in the death of a ton of people, and no one can do much of anything because the planet itself is a massive bomb waiting to explode from a single laser blast, and Kup's spark (read: soul) is about to go super nova.

The whole thing is dark and darkly comedic, but one of the stand out aspects is the art. Kup's view of the world is rendered in a creepy stylized form, while scenes taking place in reality take on the more standard appearance of the comic, with the two clashing near the end as Kup is saved by Trailbreaker. Nick Roche clearly shows his skills as both a writer AND an artist in this issue, with the stylized sections being very nice, in a grungy, horrific sort of way. Better yet, this story isn't dragged down by any continuity, it was actually explicitly written to fit into any potential universe, though obviously it's attached to the main IDW universe. This means that you can easily go and read this one really good comic without needing to worry about catching up on anything before hand.

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Galvatron (one-off)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: Guido Guidi
Date: July 2007
Summary: Galvatron emerges from the Dead Universe, and fights the Autobot team stationed in Thunderhead Pass. One of those Autobots is Sideswipe, who want to go to Earth to look for his missing brother, Sunstreaker.

This is another one of the "set up for stuff later on" Spotlight issues, and I'd argue it's even worse than Nightbeat's. The first thing that should be established, however, is that this Galvatron is NOT Megatron in any way. They just have similar names and designs. This is actually the first, and I think only, Galvatron to not just be an upgraded form of Megatron, which is definitely unique but he super doesn't get to show off any unique personality traits in this issue!

Galvatron is basically a super-powered, immortal grunt in this issue. Tasked by the other denizens of the Dead Universe to retrieve the dead body of Thunderwing. The character he does get is slightly strange, as it attempts to play on the arc of Galvatron from the movie, a pawn in a greater plan with no control of his own destiny... but also he's the one that got the entire crew of the Ark sucked into the Dead Universe. Also, in what I KNOW is contradictory to his character later on, Galvatron seems to really care about not harming major characters. The only non-generic alien he kills is Leadfoot, a Generation 2 Z-lister introduced in this issue. The only reason I can see of him not wanting to kill major characters is because of some kind of... contrivance.

There is more look into the history of the first Ark, however. While we never get the name of its captain, we do find out that its supposed purpose of "trade and exploration", but in actuality it was for nefarious purposes we'll get to in a bit. This is generally just not a hot issue, if I'm being honest, all of the non-plot stuff is mostly forgettable.

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Optimus Prime (one-off)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: Don Figueroa
Date: August 2007
Summary: After the battle in Russia, Optimus Prime seeks answers to those who came before him. However, his meeting with Omega Supreme is interrupted by a MONSTROUS foe.

Can you believe it took 9 Spotlight issues for us to get one for the big red cheese himself? This one is actually pretty good, following up on lore bits and also exploring Prime's character. Prime learns from Omega Supreme that one of his predecessors, Nova Prime (who's form he had previously encountered while uploading himself to the computer in Russia) was actually immensely corrupt, seeking to start an "expansion" of Cybertron, basically colonization. So basically, just a not really good dude, and also he was on the first Ark, wonder what's going on there!

This issue also introduces Monstructor and the Pretender Monsters (Who are currently not Pretenders), who, like Bludgeon, will go on to be massive threats throughout the comic's run. Monstructor is the first instance of a Combiner in this universe, both in terms of appearances and canonically, as this issue also introduces us to Simon Furman's second pet character, Jhiaxus. Jhiaxus, also aboard the first arc hmmmm, is basically a super mad scientist, and Monstructor here was his attempt to create a unified series of Transformers that could become super strong and super smart when all put together. This didn't go well, and Monstructor is a horrible rage monster that's also unfortunately indestructible.

Unfortunately this is where the interesting parts of the story end and the rest of it is just Prime and Supreme attempting to escape Monstructor. Prime manages to take down Monstructor using his convenient weakpoint, the Pretender Monsters are taken into custody, and Prime thinks about how shitty it is the people he looked up to were bad. This is a good story with some interesting bits to it, but it kinda shoves it aside in the later half for more action stuff that isn't as fun as you think it would be.

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Ramjet (one-off)
Writer: Stuart Moore
Artist: Robby Musso
Date: November 2007
Summary: Ramjet attempts to overthrow Megatron. It goes poorly.

This is a nice and simple dark comedy story focusing around Ramjet, who is definitely one of the weirder characters to ever get a Spotlight issue (though I wouldn't say the weirdest). This actually follows from the New Avengers/Transformers crossover, specifically the idea of Ramjet being a deserter to the Decepticon cause. It's even written by the same guy! Like the Avengers crossover, there isn't much to talk about here, but unlike the Avengers crossover, this isn't because nothing happens, but because this is actually a comedy story, and I don't want to ruin the jokes.

The story is based around Ramjet's incredibly complex and convoluted "non-linear" master plan to overthrow Megatron and become leader of the Decepticons. As you might expect from a guy with an intelligence rating of 5/10, this is a very poorly thought out idea, as we're consistently shown all the ways that Ramjet's plan has already been fucked over, and how incredibly powerful Megatron truly is. This is a really good one with some good jokes, I'd suggest reading it for yourself, especially since its another one without any continuity baggage. I do have to spoil the ending where Megatron murders Ramjet and sends his body to all the different places his plan was set around, one because its funny in a super dark way, and two because it's actually SUPER IMPORTANT incredibly later on.

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Blaster (one-off)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: Emiliano Santalucia
Date: January 2008
Summary: A newly revived Blaster attempts to solve the mystery of who tried to take his life many years ago.

This one is kinda... eh. Blaster is basically good Soundwave for those of you not in the know. He turns into a tape player, has cassette tape minions (but not like, minions), and he also hates Soundwave and Soundwave hates him. Here, Blaster is a war time radio DJ, giving confidence boosting speeches to the Autobots over the radio waves. This is, until, he goes missing after the first battle with Thunderwing.

The rest of the issue plays out like a poorly written whodunnit, mixed with introspection of how Blaster's radio persona was a facade, and that he's not really sure he can do it any more despite people needing it. The second part is an interesting look into his character, the second part is just kinda shit. Listen, you can't just... put a picture of the murderer in the middle of your crime story and say "That is the murderer". It doesn't work when you blur the photo either, ESPECIALLY not an the goddamn cast of Transformers.

The murderer was Beachcomber, and I figured it out as soon as the aforementioned blurry image was displayed. It kinda ruined the whole thing, especially when the other suspects given don't look anything like the picture either. Ugh. Anyway, it turns out that Beachcomber wasn't doing this of his own volition, and Soundwave (blast him) tracked him with a mind control device that specifically made him want to kill Blaster. So yes, this issue is one big excuse to explain why Blaster wants to fight Soundwave. It's just super weak, but it does have the fun thing of retroactively introducing Blaster's twin brother, Bluster! He was stationed in Prime's base back in Stormbringer, it totally wasn't an error.

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Arcee (one-off)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: Alex Milne
Date: February 2008
Summary: After being captured by Ultra Magnus, Fortress Maximus unleashes the dangerous Arcee to stop a Decepticon assault on her prison.

Hoo boy. This is the first part where the IDW comics kind of... falter. I could probably write a thirty minute long video essay about how Arcee was portrayed but for now I'm going to stick with just this comic rather than go into any more detail on later stuff. So for context, Arcee is the original (kind of) female Transformer, created as a pretty limp attempt to put a female lead in the series during the original movie. Despite not being a particularly well written character, Arcee is in fact one of the most popular Transformers, and has become basically a mainstay in the whole franchise.

However, Simon Furman never actually liked the concept of gender in Transformers, and his introduction to Arcee in both the Marvel comics and the IDW comics are... controversial. The Marvel comic is a whole other bag of worms, so I just... won't. In IDW, Arcee is a murderous rage monster focused solely on the destruction of Jhiaxus and everything he's done. This is a far cry from her more "badass mom" approach in like, every other piece of media she appeared in at this point, and while that interpretation is a bit hashtag problematic, I'd say this initial version of her IDW interpretation is much, much worse, mainly because Arcee is explicitly a murderous rage monster... because she's a woman.

See, because Furman doesn't like the idea of gender in Transformers, but kind of had to include Arcee, he decided to make her, get this, the result of Jhiaxus' evil science experiments. The intention here was to basically make her the first AND ONLY female Transformer because of this, but fortunately other writers realized how fucking awful that idea was. And yes, the implication is that Arcee was a male transformer forcibly altered into a female form. Again, writers later down the road will realize how shit that was, and many retcons happened in order to make this bad idea less bad.

I can understand not wanting gender in Transformers, but it's far, far too late to cut that out completely. There were a ton of female Transformers introduced between Arcee's first appearance and this comic's release, most of which are fan favorites. It was just an awful idea to do this, and I'm genuinely shocked the editor didn't say anything. What makes this worse is that there were several in-fights between Furman and other writers over this much later on, and obviously upon release the fanbase wasn't exactly peachy keen on it. Though it is worth noting that in all the comics written by Furman so far, every character used male pronouns. hmmm.

On the actual comic itself... it's a bit of a jumbled mess. The summary is basically all you need to know for the plot, with the exception that Banzaitron, who first showed up in Spotlight: Hot Rod as leader of the Decepticon Secret Service, manages to rescue the Pretender Monsters from the prison. It also introduces Fortress Maximus, who is not a giant city, but it's cool because IDW Fort Max is great. Another obviously flaw is that Arcee isn't actually around for most of Spotlight: Arcee, unsurprisingly as you might have worked out by now. She only really shows up at the start and end of the comic, and the entire thing about her backstory is shoved into three panels on the second to last page.

Also of note is the art, unfortunately done by Alex Milne. I say unfortunate because WHY did this have to be his debut in this reading order? Alex Milne is an amazing artist, probably one of the best Transformers artists ever. His work is immensely expressive and all the designs he's made are great. Being fair, he actually did Megatron Origins before this issue came out, but that's not until way later in the reading order I'm using, so tough shit for me. Anyway, read this if you want to see the start of a disaster.

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The Transformers: Devastation (6 issues)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artists: E. J. Su (1, 2, 5 & 6), Nick Roche (3), Robby Musso (4)
Date: September 2007 - February 2008
Summary: Headmasters! Scorponok! Sixshot! Soundwave! Starscream! Reapers! Galvatron! As Wheeljack and Hot Rod attempt to save a missing Ironhide from being crushed, they encounter doubles of Sunstreaker, controlled by cyborg humans that can turn into heads known as Headmasters. Hunter O'Nion, now a Headmaster himself, escapes the Machination base where he's trapped by fusing his mind with the disembodied head of Sunstreaker. The Autobots attempt to move the Ark-19 away from where the Machination can hunt them, but they are quickly hunted down by Sixshot. Ravage and Laserbeak, taken by the government agency called Skywatch, follow a signal to Soundwave. The lower rank Decepticons devise a plan to revive Starscream and take out Megatron. The Reapers come looking for Sixshot, in hopes of getting him to join their cause. Galvatron attempts to save the Earth under the orders of Nemesis Prime!?

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Mirage (one-off)
Writer: George Strayton
Artist: Guido Guidi
Date: March 2008
Summary: The Decepticon Mirage hunts down the last remaining Autobots. Wait, that's not right...

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Grimlock (one-off)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: Marcelo Matere
Date: April 2008
Summary: Grimlock is woken up by Skywatch, and proceeds to beat up Scorponok.

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Wheelie (one-off)
Writer: Simon Furman, Klaus Scherwinski
Artist: Klaus Scherwinski
Date: June 2008
Summary: Stranded on a dangerous planet for eons, a broken Wheelie might just find the hope he's been searching for.

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Cyclonus (Revelation: Part 1)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: E. J. Su
Date: June 2008
Summary: The Thunderhead Pass Autobots have some bad luck regarding Dead Universe people.

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Hardhead (Revelation: Part 2)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: Nick Roche
Date: July 2008
Summary: Hardhead helps Nightbeat trace his steps through Gorlam Prime, not knowing the dangero the two are in. Meanwhile, the rest of the Autobots piece together a plan to deal with Nemesis Prime's expansion, though it seems to be approaching faster than they expect...

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Doubledealer (Revelation: Part 3)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: Dan Khanna
Date: August 2008
Summary: The double crossing Dealer attempts to trick Hot Rod into giving him the location of The Magnificence. Optimus Prime confronts Nemesis Prime.

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The Transformers: Spotlight: Sideswipe (Revelation: Part 4)
Writer: Simon Furman
Artist: E. J. Su
Date: September 2008
Summary: The battle with Nemesis Prime and the Dead Universe beings comes to an end, but new trouble always seems to be around the corner. Sideswipe gets to punch some dude.