Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike

Saturday, August 5th, 2017 10:53AM CDT

Categories: Comic Book News, People News, Interviews
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Still operating on the lack of an embargo, we have a repeat of the full preview for IDW Publishing's Hasbro Universe First Strike comics crossover event - which we have seen before. What is new is the interview with writers Mairghread Scott and David Rodriguez, a brief one mind you, in the backmatter of the first issue of the Transformers meets GI Joe meets MASK meets Micronauts meets Rom the Spaceknight. Check it out below!

Can you give us a hint of any major surprises or revelations that readers can expect from First Strike?

MS: Well, Scarlett’s gonna throw down with the last person on Earth she wants to fight. Anyone who thinks Shazraella’s gonna spend this book clinging to some-one’s shoulder is sorely mistaken. Optimus is in for a rude awakening and Elita One is going to prove once again that there’s a reason she’s the same color as Cybertronian blood. Oh, and that’ll take us to the end of Issue 2.

DR: I’m not sure what we’re clear to say this early on. But I can say that this isn’t just an “event” series—the universe is going to be permanently changed in a meaningful way by the end of First Strike. Hopefully we can get some jaws and f-bombs to drop. When working with characters with such a long history, how do you raise the bar and bring readers something they haven’t seen before?

MS: The most challenging part was more tonal than anything else. Till All Are One is a very political book. G.I. Joe is very balls-to-the-wall crazy action. Micronauts is fast-paced with a lot of wry humor. M.A.S.K. and Rom take on a darker tone. We wanted to feel like all these books could live together and still give fans each book’s unique aspect.

DR: I think the best thing we can do for the readers, and luckily Mairghread and David Hedgecock have been a big advocate for this as well, is to make sure that we are engaging all the characters in this story with emotional stakes that resonate with our readers. Sure, we can put Cybertron at risk with a huge, summer blockbuster style event and visuals, but without that relatable, human backbone to the story, it feels hollow. We are going to do our best to deliver that experience to fans.

Are there any characters you’re going to work with in First Strike that you haven’t had the chance to write before? Any characters you’ve been away from for a while that you’re excited to write again?

MS: This is my first time writing Scarlett and I am psyched. I’ve been wanting to write her for years. And it’s always a thrill to write Optimus. It’s been surprising how fun all the Joes are to write, but the real stand-out right now is Shazraella. She’s such a stuck-up, overconfident, condescending...well, every line of dialogue she has is a joy.

DR: Scarlett has always been a favorite. I was glad that I got to use her in the M.A.S.K. Annual and she has a large part in First Strike. She is just a fantastic character to write. But part of the fun of First Strike is the opportunity to discover and expand on characters I wasn’t as familiar with growing up and exploring how they interact with each other. But don’t be surprised if you see Sunstreaker. He is, after all, the prettiest damn Transformer that ever rolled out.

And finally, if you could be a Transformer,who or what would you want the ability to transform into?

MS: JET! JET! JET! Wait—! Robot dragon! No, 1950s UFO! ...Did anyone call shark/bird yet?

This may take a while.

DR: Oh, I would totally want to be Shockwave. Not only is his design incredible, but he might be the most stone-cold, ghost-faced, unflappable character in the entire universe. I don’t know if you remember, but Megatron called him from Earth after 4 million years and Shockwave picked up on the FIRST RING. No hemming and hawing, or “Where the hell you been?!” He was just “Yes, Lord Megatron.” 4 million years and he didn’t blink. That’s just badass.

Transformers News: Interview with IDW First Strike Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike

Credit(s): IDW

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Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902300)
Posted by Prowl4 on August 5th, 2017 @ 3:01pm CDT

Baffling how mairghread scott continues to get work. Awful writer.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902303)
Posted by Va'al on August 5th, 2017 @ 3:27pm CDT

Prowl4 wrote:Baffling how mairghread scott continues to get work. Awful writer.

Sorry, Broseph. Must hurt, my proud-standing sugarloaf, to see her name remind you that you, my pal, are baffled to the point that you - o dudemeister - feel the need to comment everytime. Such a toll it must take, my dude.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902305)
Posted by Prowl4 on August 5th, 2017 @ 3:29pm CDT

Va'al wrote:
Prowl4 wrote:Baffling how mairghread scott continues to get work. Awful writer.

Sorry, Broseph. Must hurt, my proud-standing sugarloaf, to see her name remind you that you, my pal, are baffled to the point that you - o dudemeister - feel the need to comment everytime. Such a toll it must take, my dude.

Cool story needs more dragonstorms and gick.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902306)
Posted by Va'al on August 5th, 2017 @ 3:33pm CDT

Prowl4 wrote:
Va'al wrote:
Prowl4 wrote:Baffling how mairghread scott continues to get work. Awful writer.

Sorry, Broseph. Must hurt, my proud-standing sugarloaf, to see her name remind you that you, my pal, are baffled to the point that you - o dudemeister - feel the need to comment everytime. Such a toll it must take, my dude.

Cool story needs more dragonstorms and gick.

My pal! Using some Irish on the boards, stud? Yay for linguistic diversity, dudeicus!
Thank you once again, tiger, for some excellent contributions to the discussion.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902307)
Posted by Prowl4 on August 5th, 2017 @ 3:39pm CDT

Va'al wrote:
Prowl4 wrote:
Va'al wrote:
Prowl4 wrote:Baffling how mairghread scott continues to get work. Awful writer.

Sorry, Broseph. Must hurt, my proud-standing sugarloaf, to see her name remind you that you, my pal, are baffled to the point that you - o dudemeister - feel the need to comment everytime. Such a toll it must take, my dude.

Cool story needs more dragonstorms and gick.

My pal! Using some Irish on the boards, stud? Yay for linguistic diversity, dudeicus!
Thank you once again, tiger, for some excellent contributions to the discussion.

Thanks for being a fan of my cac. I know a fan when I see one and you're a fan

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902310)
Posted by Va'al on August 5th, 2017 @ 3:52pm CDT

Not a true fan - we have a thread for that.

Ain't comics swell! GI Joe on Cybertron, huh? What next? Transforming robots?!

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902312)
Posted by Nexus Knight on August 5th, 2017 @ 3:54pm CDT

Prowl4 wrote:
Va'al wrote:
Prowl4 wrote:
Va'al wrote:
Prowl4 wrote:Baffling how mairghread scott continues to get work. Awful writer.

Sorry, Broseph. Must hurt, my proud-standing sugarloaf, to see her name remind you that you, my pal, are baffled to the point that you - o dudemeister - feel the need to comment everytime. Such a toll it must take, my dude.

Cool story needs more dragonstorms and gick.

My pal! Using some Irish on the boards, stud? Yay for linguistic diversity, dudeicus!
Thank you once again, tiger, for some excellent contributions to the discussion.

Thanks for being a fan of my cac. I know a fan when I see one and you're a fan

I feel like someone got drunk someone during this exchange... /:)

Also, I absolutely love Skywarp's tag. Priceless. Absolutely priceless.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902313)
Posted by Prowl4 on August 5th, 2017 @ 3:57pm CDT

Va'al wrote:Not a true fan - we have a thread for that.

Ain't comics swell! GI Joe on Cybertron, huh? What next? Transforming robots?!

You're definitely a true fan. If this was ppv you'd be subscribed kid.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902314)
Posted by Prowl4 on August 5th, 2017 @ 3:57pm CDT

Nexus Knight wrote:
Prowl4 wrote:
Va'al wrote:
Prowl4 wrote:
Va'al wrote:
Prowl4 wrote:Baffling how mairghread scott continues to get work. Awful writer.

Sorry, Broseph. Must hurt, my proud-standing sugarloaf, to see her name remind you that you, my pal, are baffled to the point that you - o dudemeister - feel the need to comment everytime. Such a toll it must take, my dude.

Cool story needs more dragonstorms and gick.

My pal! Using some Irish on the boards, stud? Yay for linguistic diversity, dudeicus!
Thank you once again, tiger, for some excellent contributions to the discussion.

Thanks for being a fan of my cac. I know a fan when I see one and you're a fan

I feel like someone got drunk someone during this exchange...

Also, I absolutely love Skywarp's tag. Priceless. Absolutely priceless.

I love my fans.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902345)
Posted by Daniel Adkins on August 5th, 2017 @ 8:06pm CDT

Va'al wrote:Ain't comics swell! GI Joe on Cybertron, huh? What next? Transforming robots?!

You're right, Va'al! Comics are swell. I cannot wait to read First Strike. It looks really good.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902736)
Posted by Daniel Adkins on August 8th, 2017 @ 9:37am CDT

In case anyone needs a refresher on the Hasbro Universe events/needs to catch up on a title you didn't read, Action and Adventure just released a special First Strike Primer podcast. Perfect for anyone curious about any titles they haven't read. http://hasbrouniverse.libsyn.com/bonus- ... -to-strike

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902891)
Posted by Va'al on August 9th, 2017 @ 1:34am CDT

Strike One
(Spoiler free-ish)

Synopsis
The crossover of the year is here! Earth is finally ready to officially join the Cybertronian Council of Worlds and appoint their first representative to the Council. Too bad the ceremony is interrupted by a massive explosion and the forces of COBRA! Now it’s up to Scarlett, Optimus Prime, G.I. Joe and the Autobots to save two worlds!

Because it worked so well last time...

Story

It begins. For a long while now IDW Publishing and the comics media mill have been promoting the first full crossover (since Revolution, anyway) for the various Hasbro properties licensed to the comics world: this is where we start, with issue #1, by Mairghread Scott and David A. Rodriguez - which also contains an additional story - The Origins of Evil, Part One: Redcliffe Club, written by John Barber. I'll talk more about this below, in summary.

Tone set

The first thing to note is that, due to IDW scheduling issues, this beginning of a brave new world in the Hasbro Universe is actually spoiling at least one of the series that lead up to it (Revolutionaries, in case you were curious), and probably needs a little more context from both Optimus Prime and GI Joe to actually reach the starting point we're at.

...wait for it...

That is obviously no fault of the writers, and what they do offer in terms of plot is actually a satisfying approach to a crossover: easing in the various factions, with GI Joe and Transformers taking the first brunt, rather than crashing all of the properties at once. The villains of the piece are set up, and the coda story does some more to attempt round-off the major players on this side too, if briefly so.

note: this gag is excellent

The better part of the story though, and the only one that can be fairly judged this far, is most definitely how the various characters are built up and interact with each other - Skywarp and Scarlett's Joes are clearly the stand-outs here - something that a recent interview had probably clarified, at least for me. We'll have to see how the wider game is played, now that the initial set-up has begun.

Art

Max Dunbar is at the helm here for the issue - and I can't help but wonder why the art doesn't feel up to his usual standards. There's nothing horribly wrong, but something in the designs for the Transformers in particular, especially on profile shots, and every other odd panel just don't line up with his usually stellar work on Micronauts. Perhaps a tighter deadline for the big event?

Similar issues can be held up to Netho Diaz (pencils) and Walden Wong (inks), though I wonder whether having lines and inks applied to the main story, and leave the back-up to a single artist may in fact be a solution to the problem. Again, it's not bad, it's just not overly consistent, and I can it putting readers off.

..eep

In terms of colours, Ander Zarate - Dunbar's partner in crime on Micronauts - is doing well to bring some of the sheen of Till All Are One for Cybertron, but perhaps uses a little too much lighting on the faces of the characters, and Scarlett suffers the most in close-ups and wider shots alike.

Similarly for David Garcia Cruz on the Barber-coda, some of the colours used on the heavier lines makes jawlines and facial features a little too flat at times (Baron Ironblood in particular), something that seems to happen with these books with a regular frequency.

There are good moments too!

Veteran on robotic lettering Tom B. Long takes on this issue too, and the captions that some find irritating in other books are actually the best solution (and placement) in an event like this trying to attract new readers - and there's a pretty spiffy Kachoom to marvel at, too, before a BUDDABUDDABUDDA.

Covers? There are many. The one spotlighted in the thumbnail is the variant from Sara Pitre Durocher, showing the robot side of the event from a crowd perspective - as most of the other artists chose the character spotlights instead. You can view them all in our Comics Database, as usual, and choose your favourite.

Thoughts
Spoilerish ahead

Much like the case of Revolution, the visuals do not shine kindly on the artists involved, as all of the people working on here are usually a pleasure to see on the page. The pressure of the event, the scheduling issues, editorial shortstaffing - I am most definitely giving the benefit of the doubt to all involved for the first issue, but I can see this heading in a similar direction to the previous project, in terms of art, meaning that creators will feel much better when the five issues are over.

I'm also down with just a series of Skywarp/Roadblock's fashion commentary

As for the story, however, there are no real complaints from me so far. The issue is most definitely a GI Joe story set-up, that just happens to use the setting of Cybertron - and that is not a bad thing! Easing into a crossover is a much better plan than expected, and I am glad this approach was taken. I am definitely interested to see how the other franchises will be brought in, at this stage, and that's the best outcome that could've happened, really.

out of

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902912)
Posted by Kurona on August 9th, 2017 @ 4:19am CDT

Better than I thought it'd be, which is a pleasant surprise.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902948)
Posted by ScottyP on August 9th, 2017 @ 7:29am CDT

Does it seem super obvious to anyone else that Baron Ironblood isn't Colton, but Chameleon posing as him? It's the only way I can explain Spike being all "hurr-durr gotta help these Cybertronians" without discounting that as a failure in writing.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902950)
Posted by Daniel Adkins on August 9th, 2017 @ 7:30am CDT

ScottyP wrote:Does it seem super obvious to anyone else that Baron Ironblood isn't Colton, but Chameleon posing as him? It's the only way I can explain Spike being all "hurr-durr gotta help these Cybertronians" without discounting that as a failure in writing.

But Chameleon is a Joe.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902954)
Posted by Randomhero on August 9th, 2017 @ 7:43am CDT

ScottyP wrote:Does it seem super obvious to anyone else that Baron Ironblood isn't Colton, but Chameleon posing as him? It's the only way I can explain Spike being all "hurr-durr gotta help these Cybertronians" without discounting that as a failure in writing.

Someone didn't read issue zero that revealed Joe Colton is alive and is working with a cobra to be all xenophobic.

And yeah, Cameleon is a GI Joe and present in the comic.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902960)
Posted by Randomhero on August 9th, 2017 @ 8:23am CDT

I like the issue. I'm just reading revoltionaries and the TF books but I followed it fine.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1902968)
Posted by ScottyP on August 9th, 2017 @ 8:55am CDT

^ You're both missing my point by a mile. Randomhero missed it by, well, like, didn't even get in the same orbit :lol:

All good though, typing on my phone in between meetings so some brevity is in order.

I'll spell it out more carefully this time.

Spike doesn't like Transformers. Not a bit. This is long established. Due to this, it struck me as odd that he's going with the flow so easily, while on Cybertron no less. It seems like one of those things where, for Ironblood's "First Strike" to work, he'd need some help from the team assigned to this Cybertronian mission. Spike is a complete prick who'd totally help with that sort of thing, but he's also the kind of prick that'd want some dramatic subterfuge. Thus, he conspires with another team member. Who do we not see from that team? Hi-Tech, Mainframe, and Chameleon. One of these is a shape shifter. So is Zartan, if you like that better, and it gives a connection to the MASK book.

Anyhow, I think Chameleon is the most telling absence because of Flint's presence. She's been close to him at almost all times since their introduction in Optimus Prime. Odd that she's not there at a critical moment for Flint's Joe squad.

Then there's Scarlett strongly suggesting something's up with "Joe Colton", thinking he may be under someone's control. He dead. This is some crafty shapeshifter work, probably outside the realm of wraith magic this time. Maybe.

Finally, Mercy Gale and Storm Shadow got cooperative pretty quickly, and some of Gale's dialogue suggests she sees through this facade being put up.

Of course, I could be wrong and this is just some dumb stuff and FS 0 wasn't a magician's misdirection like I think it is. If this doesn't go any deeper than what's on the surface, I'm disappointed in the lack of creativity.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1903122)
Posted by Daniel Adkins on August 9th, 2017 @ 2:12pm CDT

ScottyP wrote:^ You're both missing my point by a mile. Randomhero missed it by, well, like, didn't even get in the same orbit All good though, typing on my phone in between meetings so some brevity is in order.

I'll spell it out more carefully this time.

Spike doesn't like Transformers. Not a bit. This is long established. Due to this, it struck me as odd that he's going with the flow so easily, while on Cybertron no less. It seems like one of those things where, for Ironblood's "First Strike" to work, he'd need some help from the team assigned to this Cybertronian mission. Spike is a complete prick who'd totally help with that sort of thing, but he's also the kind of prick that'd want some dramatic subterfuge. Thus, he conspires with another team member. Who do we not see from that team? Hi-Tech, Mainframe, and Chameleon. One of these is a shape shifter. So is Zartan, if you like that better, and it gives a connection to the MASK book.

Anyhow, I think Chameleon is the most telling absence because of Flint's presence. She's been close to him at almost all times since their introduction in Optimus Prime. Odd that she's not there at a critical moment for Flint's Joe squad.

Then there's Scarlett strongly suggesting something's up with "Joe Colton", thinking he may be under someone's control. He dead. This is some crafty shapeshifter work, probably outside the realm of wraith magic this time. Maybe.

Finally, Mercy Gale and Storm Shadow got cooperative pretty quickly, and some of Gale's dialogue suggests she sees through this facade being put up.

Of course, I could be wrong and this is just some dumb stuff and FS 0 wasn't a magician's misdirection like I think it is. If this doesn't go any deeper than what's on the surface, I'm disappointed in the lack of creativity.

Sorry, Scotty, but I think you're reaching for something that isn't there. Colton is Baron Ironblood. Now I'm not necessarily a fan of that idea, but there's really nothing to suggest he's being mind controlled. He thinks the Transformers are going to destroy humanity and so he's taking premature action to ensure that doesn't happen. Also, if Chameleon working for Cobra kinda invalidates her arc from back in Cobra. I think Scarlett suggesting something is wrong with Colton is her wishing that her father figure won't do this horrible thing. Also, the flashback with Dr. X takes place after the Action Man mini, where Storm Shadow was already working for Dr. X.

As for my thoughts on this issue, I liked it. Of course, it would have been better if I could've read Revolutionaries #8 first. But I liked that it felt more toned down than Revolution. This honestly feels more like a Transformers/Joe crossover than something that brings the entire universe together. We'll see if that remains true throughout the event or not.

I also loved the backup story. It makes me wonder how long Colton has actually been Ironblood. Assuming that First Strike #0 takes place sometime before Revolution and Colton wasn't active as Ironblood before that, that makes Ironblood a very recent villain and also puts the events of the Action Man mini IMMEDIATELY before Revolution.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1903380)
Posted by ScottyP on August 10th, 2017 @ 8:23am CDT

Daniel Adkins wrote:Sorry, Scotty, but I think you're reaching for something that isn't there. Colton is Baron Ironblood.

You're proobably right about that

Daniel Adkins wrote:Now I'm not necessarily a fan of that idea

This is why. I share a similar feeling, I'm also not a fan of it. It feels cheap? Is that the word I'm looking for? Something about it rings hollow and I'm grasping at straws wanting it to be more.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1903588)
Posted by Daniel Adkins on August 10th, 2017 @ 10:15pm CDT

We've got the iTunes preview for First Strike #2! https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/first- ... 3159?mt=11 Gotta love that description of the Red Shadows.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1903612)
Posted by william-james88 on August 10th, 2017 @ 11:25pm CDT

Via iTunes, we have the short preview for IDW First Strike #2, an IDW event featuring Transformers, GI Joe, MASK, Micronauts, Revolutionaries and more! The images have been enlarged and mirrored below, and we will expect a more substantial preview in the next week or so too - so stay tuned for more!

The crossover of the year continues! Scarlett learns the truth behind Baron Ironbloodês plan to destroy all life on Cybertron, but with her team stranded on Earth, she must turn to an unlikely ally to help her reach the besieged planet. Enter: Soundwave!

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1903622)
Posted by SG Roadbuster on August 11th, 2017 @ 12:05am CDT

so Till All Are One got cancelled to make room for this?!
terrible decision IDW. this is why you're losing readers.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1903623)
Posted by Daniel Adkins on August 11th, 2017 @ 12:09am CDT

Not really. TAAO was cancelled because of low sales. First Strike was an event that was going to happen anyways. The two things are not mutually exclusive.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1903646)
Posted by Windsweeper on August 11th, 2017 @ 4:28am CDT

I'm kind of liking this so far. Those cyber Ninjas remind me of the Cobra Night Creeper Ninjas from the 90s.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1903654)
Posted by Randomhero on August 11th, 2017 @ 6:14am CDT

SG Roadbuster wrote:so Till All Are One got cancelled to make room for this?!
terrible decision IDW. this is why you're losing readers.

Yes this comic that's been set up for the past 6-9 months totally canceled till all are one. Or you could read scotts statement on why till all are one is gone.

Either way.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1905341)
Posted by Daniel Adkins on August 20th, 2017 @ 6:27am CDT

Full Preview for First Strike #2: http://www.cbr.com/first-strike-2-exclu ... &view=list

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1905435)
Posted by william-james88 on August 20th, 2017 @ 8:17pm CDT

We had an iTunes sneak peak for IDW's First Strike #2 last week, and now we have a full preview courtesy of CBR. Enjoy!

STORY BY
David Rodriguez and Mairghread Scott

ART BY
Max Dunbar

COLORS BY
Ander Zarate

LETTERS BY
Tom B. Long

COVER BY
Alex Ronald, Davide Fabbri, Freddie E. Williams II, Jay Fosgitt, Leonardo Manco, Max Dunbar, and Rob Duenas

PUBLISHER
IDW Publishing

The crossover of the year continues! Scarlett learns the truth behind Baron Ironbloodês plan to destroy all life on Cybertron, but with her team stranded on Earth, she must turn to an unlikely ally to help her reach the besieged planet. Enter: Soundwave!

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1905841)
Posted by ScottyP on August 22nd, 2017 @ 8:28pm CDT

It's not bad. It's not doing it for me either. I think First Strike actually does suffer a little from an overbooking of GI Joe characters. They have most of their team and the villainous presence is primarily Cobra. Meanwhile there are no Micronauts, no Revolutionaries/Action Man/AM Programme, Rom is having coffee and a bagel, and the Combaticons are guarding the other half dozen named Transformers.

I get it, Hasbro wants the resuscitated corpse of GI Joe to somehow gain back some glory. It makes sense. It's just not working for me yet.

... now that I mention Combaticons, a Bruticus v Predaking encounter in this series would make me forgive some of the attempts at Protecting The Brand.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1905844)
Posted by Kurona on August 22nd, 2017 @ 8:42pm CDT

Yeah, unlike Revolution which was rage-inducingly bad, this feels more... 'eh'. It's happening, it's annoying it's happening, but it's not awful and I guess I'll just wait for the actual comics to come back. This is like waiting for a bus and it's taking a while, so you just shrug and get out your phone to play snake or candy crush or that Magikarp game only I like. Revolution was like waiting for a bus that's been delayed several times while your phone's out of power, there's no roof to the bus stop while it's raining heavily, and some douchebag beside you keeps going on about how totally awesome he is and you just want him to stop.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1905927)
Posted by ScottyP on August 23rd, 2017 @ 8:11am CDT

That's a great analogy. I can't say this series is bad. Can't say I have strong positive emotions towards it either though.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1905962)
Posted by Tigertrack on August 23rd, 2017 @ 9:57am CDT

Review of First Strike Issue #2 - A Hasbro Comic Event -
(or is it 2nd strike now? or Strike 1.1?), it's got a couple of spoils.

“The hardest part of this whole mess is knowing that you’ll be the one to try and stop me.”
“So I see this as my chance to tell you, this isn’t what I wanted,” wrote the mentor to the student…

-Last time-
Earth was about to be officially ‘welcomed’ to the intergalactic council on Cybertron with Marissa Fairborne being sworn in as the ambassador. Then everything went about the exact opposite of how they all wanted it to. Baron Ironblood and his allies of evil infiltrated the grand event and started to attack the populace of Cybertron. But, what’s the main play here? Surely, even a seemingly infinite group of cyber- wraith red ninja and some rowdy dreadnoks, Iron Grenadiers, and BATS wouldn’t really be threatening for very long, right?

-This time-
“...I hope you take what happens next as a compliment.”

Be a tad leery if you are worried about continuity alignment, released materials, and chronologically happening events. Revolutionaries #8, the final issue, was supposed to be completed before this came out, as was MASK #10, which also hasn’t been released yet. This issue continues to reveal things that might have been uncertain at the end of the Revolutionaries series, or that MASK issue, but none seemingly as big as the ruined revelation issue #1 provided.

Amongst the chaos begun last issue- Baron Ironblood’s force of ninjas and dreadnoks attacking Cybertronians- and the human delegation; the larger plot begins to unfold as the other evil allies involved advance the real threat- poisoning all the inhabitants of Cybertron via the food supply -their energon. A seemingly simple, but effective plan— at least that is their evil hope— using Shazraella (of the evil Micronauts) and her enerchange abilities, and the talisman which was the focus of Revolutionaries, in some as yet, unclear way. Genocide them before they genocide us. If there is anything we find out from Coltan's inner-thoughts its that he's on what he believes is a last possible solution for the Earth's robot problem.

Oh yes, and on the more political side, the Solstar Order gets involved to make things even more difficult, but perhaps not how you might expect. The council delegates all start trying to pin blame, and not do much problem solving. Marissa loosens her sassy ambassador chops on Elita One after taking one too many jabs about being a tiny useless flesh-covered bug. There’s no crying in intergalactic politics Elita! Suck it up! You've been served...*add choice cliche here*

As Srgt. Savage would say, 'Boo-YAH!'

Meanwhile, on the planet Earth, Scarlett, the Joes, MASK, Soundwave, and some of the Earthbound Autobots look to find a way to travel to Cybertron to help out those already there. Victorion twins, Skyburst and Stormclash, show their engineering prowess and build their character as they work to get the group to their goal, not entirely completed by the too-quick-in-coming end of the issue.

-Art-
The art by Max Dunbar (lines and inks) are gorgeous! Lots of detail, well-crafted battles with jumbles of red ninjas, BATS, and Iron Grenadiers seemingly everywhere, and yet he makes it work, and it never seems TOO over the top, or any more messy than one would want to portray this chaotic moment. I love most of his panels, be it humans or robots. I thought the first pages were a bit more polished than the last, but I also think that’s nit-picky, of me. The shadows and line work, the clouds, explosions, movement implied, facial expressions, and weapons fire all come off beautifully. Just when you think you might be having some trouble comparing the depth, weight, and size of all the varied characters, low and behold, here comes a panel that helps to make size relationships clear.

I wonder what I should have for lunch today? Did I turn the lights off before leaving and lock the doors? I've got to remember to pick up my other dry-cleaning after the incursion.

Max couldn’t have accomplished the visual story-telling as well as he has without the colors by Andar Zarate which do very well in making Max’s work come to life. Cybertron is mostly bright, which seemed kind of odd, and Earth was very dark most of the time, being underwater, and at night for most of its action. BUT it all works well together to visually tell the story.

Never forget, Tom B. Long does the art team's letter work and I think it’s almost always a job taken for granted (except when it doesn't work - then you really notice) even though our review team does try to always recognize the entire team’s efforts in the storytelling, as well. I gush on Tom all the time. Ka-thoom, brother, Ka-thoom.

-Writing-
As you can tell, I wanted to focus on the word-smithing a little bit at the beginning of the review. The versatile Mairghread Scott and David A. Rodriguez are crafting a very fun, and action-filled Hasbro crossover here. It’s only the second issue so we don’t know all that the duo have planned for this series, but it’s starting out promising, and doesn’t require the setup that Revolution had to do for the Hasbro-verse. Say what you will about Revolution, it and the individual comics that sprung from it, have already introduced what needed to be done for First Strike, and now we can just get to the evil plots and lots of action! It seems like there’s certainly more coming that not even the ‘poisoning of the well’ is meant to be THE complication and climax of the series. Oh, there’s more coming, but the set up has been really nice.

Talk to the hand! (I couldn't resist)

I’ve enjoyed reading the expounded mid-combat banter between the Joe forces on Earth and hearing the inner dialogue from Baron Ironblood as he continues to justify his actions of siding with the very enemies whose ideals he fought for so long. So far, he hasn’t really had much strife about it. But I wonder if he and his protege might have a bit of moment soon…one that may turn his thinking again.

-Add-On- The Origins of Evil Part Two: A Game of Chess-
There’s a secondary story in this issue, just like in the last, that works to explain how this group of evil doers came to side with one formerly super do-gooder, Joe Coltan. Enter Destro- who should probably hate Joe Colton and dispose of him on the spot. So does he? There’s money to made somehow of course…so probably not (and that little 'Colton's still alive' detail). Read it to find out the nitty-gritty. And by the way, there’s a whole other creative team to recognize for this tale that includes pencils by Netho Diaz, tight inks by Walden Wong, and David Garcia Cruz throws down the deep dark colors, of this short, written by John Barber. These pieces have supported the more action-oriented piece of the main story very well, offering the origin of the group that’s attacking Cybertron, and delving into their motivations. It’s a great companion that might have been fine interspersed among the ‘regular’ story, but I’m sure they thought about that, and might have considered what it might do to interrupt the pacing, and comprehensibility of the overall issue(s).

Show me the MONEY!

-Final Thoughts-
I have really enjoyed the first two issues of this series so far! The art has been superb, the story-telling well-paced, fun, and dramatic, and enough eye candy for Hasbro-universe folks of all kinds to enjoy. I LOVED seeing the VENOM Outlaw, and the Cobra Razorback show up this issue. I just hope that we get to see them in a bigger combat situation later on! Bring on more treats as such.

I'd like a burger, fries, small soda, oh and a chocolate milk shake, please...

The hardest part of suspending my disbelief for enjoying this series so far is that war torn, experienced vets like Optimus Prime, and Ironhide are retreating (literally running!) from a gaggle of cyber-ninja (a naggle?), BATS, Iron Grenadiers, and those crazy, moralless dreadnoks albeit with some high tech weapons. I know there’s a LOT of those baddies (effectively portrayed visually), and the heroes are thinking of the safety of the Earth delegation, and the peaceful Cybertron populace, but really, Ironhide and his ‘badgeless’, or his new security forces, aren’t a match for this? I understand an initial surprise, and possible panic, but really? Ah well, I’m still going to enjoy it, and I won’t let this bother me too much, as I’m pretty sure the diversionary attack will get quelled pretty quickly in the next issue (combiners? pest control?) and the focus will be on the secondary threat. RECOMMENDED READ for TF fans (it is happening on Cybertron; lots of bots involved)!

Optimus wants me to give it 5 of 5, but I'm going with...
:HASBRO:

1/2 out of :HASBRO:

Plenty of awesome covers to choose from, but I really enjoy COVER D by Rob Duenas. Very bulky, big detailed figures, and the inclusion of fat tankor and Sigma Six looking weapons…love it! Check out these close ups, and the full image in the thumb nail!

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1905967)
Posted by Randomhero on August 23rd, 2017 @ 10:17am CDT

This is a good issue and good story! I'm sure plenty have written it off before issue one dropped but this is worth picking up! It's probably not as transformer heavy as some want especially being on Cybertron but it's a nice post TAAO story that concludes certain things. Carcer is up in orbit again, Windblade back to her old self which for me doesn't need more explaining. She recovered and walked out in the final issue and she's fine.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1906024)
Posted by Daniel Adkins on August 23rd, 2017 @ 2:50pm CDT

Kurona wrote:Yeah, unlike Revolution which was rage-inducingly bad, this feels more... 'eh'. It's happening, it's annoying it's happening, but it's not awful and I guess I'll just wait for the actual comics to come back. This is like waiting for a bus and it's taking a while, so you just shrug and get out your phone to play snake or candy crush or that Magikarp game only I like. Revolution was like waiting for a bus that's been delayed several times while your phone's out of power, there's no roof to the bus stop while it's raining heavily, and some douchebag beside you keeps going on about how totally awesome he is and you just want him to stop.

That's a little much. Revolution is no gem, but it's a fun, bombastic show of throwing all the toys in the box and letting them go wild.

Personally, I like that First Strike is doing the opposite. This is very much a smaller story, focusing on the Joes (and MASK) and the Transformers. And really, this story is a lot more of a character driven story for Scarlett, who really is the main character here.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1906037)
Posted by Tigertrack on August 23rd, 2017 @ 3:38pm CDT

Randomhero wrote:This is a good issue and good story! I'm sure plenty have written it off before issue one dropped but this is worth picking up! It's probably not as transformer heavy as some want especially being on Cybertron but it's a nice post TAAO story that concludes certain things. Carcer is up in orbit again, Windblade back to her old self which for me doesn't need more explaining. She recovered and walked out in the final issue and she's fine.

Those are great points that I should have included in my review!

I love how Fairborne just put Elita One in her place...

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1906039)
Posted by Tigertrack on August 23rd, 2017 @ 3:41pm CDT

Daniel Adkins wrote:
Kurona wrote:Yeah, unlike Revolution which was rage-inducingly bad, this feels more... 'eh'. It's happening, it's annoying it's happening, but it's not awful and I guess I'll just wait for the actual comics to come back. This is like waiting for a bus and it's taking a while, so you just shrug and get out your phone to play snake or candy crush or that Magikarp game only I like. Revolution was like waiting for a bus that's been delayed several times while your phone's out of power, there's no roof to the bus stop while it's raining heavily, and some douchebag beside you keeps going on about how totally awesome he is and you just want him to stop.

That's a little much. Revolution is no gem, but it's a fun, bombastic show of throwing all the toys in the box and letting them go wild.

Personally, I like that First Strike is doing the opposite. This is very much a smaller story, focusing on the Joes (and MASK) and the Transformers. And really, this story is a lot more of a character driven story for Scarlett, who really is the main character here.

Indeed, I agree... especially in your Scarlett point. I think we're building toward that. This is the next GI JOE VS. Transformers (not done by Scioli). In fact, it reminds me of the previous GI JOE/TF with SERPENTO.R., but now it's cannon and built up to and referenced through the regular comics!

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1906063)
Posted by ScottyP on August 23rd, 2017 @ 5:34pm CDT

I'm glad folks are enjoying this one. Idk what switch clicked, maybe I'm just grumpy today but this one did little for me. I can't beat it up but I think it's just that its cast is comprised of mostly characters that I don't have a strong connection to. Windblade and Ironhide are great but in these event books they just seem to be present and accounted for but not important.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1907805)
Posted by ScottyP on August 31st, 2017 @ 6:05pm CDT

Via iTunes, we have the first preview for IDW Publishing and Hasbro's latest foray into Total Brand Awareness. This takes the form of the usual first three pages, this time for the upcoming First Strike #3. Soundwave, Skyburst, Stormclash, Scarlett's GI Joe team, and even M.A.S.K. are ready to punch and kick their way through Castle Destro to accomplish their goals and achieve a holistic, synergistic team-up of brand partnership.

It looks like you'll be able to take a deep dive into consumer engagement with the entire issue on September 13th, and we've mirrored the preview pages below for your immediate enjoyment. Let us know what you think in the Energon Pub Forums once you've peeled back the onion on these pages by replying to this news post.

Keep it here at Seibertron.com for all the latest about First Strike and other Hasbro Universe comics from IDW Publishing featuring the Transformers!

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1907823)
Posted by Budder Prime on August 31st, 2017 @ 8:52pm CDT

"I prefer to think of everyone else as profoundly deaf."
Once again, Soundwave gives an awesome quote.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1907824)
Posted by Bounti76 on August 31st, 2017 @ 9:18pm CDT

It's nice to see Stormclash and Skyburst getting a little more characterization. Hopefully we'll see more of it in this issue.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1907841)
Posted by ricemazter on August 31st, 2017 @ 11:02pm CDT

How can people claim Optimus Prime is tyrannical? How has he affected policy on earth in the slightest aside from providing people with humanitarian aid and fighting other invading aliens? As far as I can tell, he hasn't done anything.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1907853)
Posted by steve2275 on September 1st, 2017 @ 12:35am CDT

ricemazter wrote:How can people claim Optimus Prime is tyrannical? How has he affected policy on earth in the slightest aside from providing people with humanitarian aid and fighting other invading aliens? As far as I can tell, he hasn't done anything.

got that right

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1907865)
Posted by Stormshot_Prime on September 1st, 2017 @ 2:04am CDT

ricemazter wrote:How can people claim Optimus Prime is tyrannical? How has he affected policy on earth in the slightest aside from providing people with humanitarian aid and fighting other invading aliens? As far as I can tell, he hasn't done anything.

Well, claiming to "Annex" the Earth was a bit extreme. You really have to think about it from our own perspective. If a HUGE attack killed literally a billion people we certainly wouldn't trust the perpetrators, regardless of race. A lot of patters with contemporary issues there. Also Cybertronian are like walking tanks demanding rights so it's a bit scary lol.

But us, knowing Prime, I agree the humans are idiots for not seeing the good and the difference between Bot and Con.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1907883)
Posted by Randomhero on September 1st, 2017 @ 6:28am CDT

ricemazter wrote:How can people claim Optimus Prime is tyrannical? How has he affected policy on earth in the slightest aside from providing people with humanitarian aid and fighting other invading aliens? As far as I can tell, he hasn't done anything.

Because he's a giant alien robot whose race 5-10 years ago invaded and killed close to a billion people and came back and said (with good intentions) he's annexing the earth. That's why. Does matter if he's here to help.

Look at our own world. I'm American. We've done gone to other countries to help and liberate the oppressed and a lot of those countries still burn our flag, kill our soldiers and celebrate 9/11 like a holiday.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1907884)
Posted by Tigertrack on September 1st, 2017 @ 6:31am CDT

Stormshot_Prime wrote:
ricemazter wrote:How can people claim Optimus Prime is tyrannical? How has he affected policy on earth in the slightest aside from providing people with humanitarian aid and fighting other invading aliens? As far as I can tell, he hasn't done anything.

Well, claiming to "Annex" the Earth was a bit extreme. You really have to think about it from our own perspective. If a HUGE attack killed literally a billion people we certainly wouldn't trust the perpetrators, regardless of race. A lot of patters with contemporary issues there. Also Cybertronian are like walking tanks demanding rights so it's a bit scary lol.

But us, knowing Prime, I agree the humans are idiots for not seeing the good and the difference between Bot and Con.

The line between bot and con is no longer dark versus light. Each side has monsters and monstrous moments to their credit. Each side has heroic efforts as well, albeit the cons have far less.

I think this trooper is an extremist believing propaganda set forth by certain parties, like his employer.

The war is supposedly over so the badges aren't 'supposed' to mean much anyway. It is interesting that he humans react so intensely toward hate with Jazz for what he did, but seem to mostly except Soundwave even though he and his minions were tearing it up in AHM.

That has been a major frustration point of mine forever though with the humans vs. TFs thing. The failure to recognize the two warring factions and associate and separate events with each has been in my mind so oversimplified ignoring major facts for convenience. Humans hate all the robots because they are all fighting on Earth now is the motto/stance. It'd be nice to see a human group of activists who support the Autobots, as they should, gain some ground and sway.

Yes, I saw tyrannical and raised an eye brow too, and then remembered he's an extremist soldier at least partially brain-washed by his boss(es). We know Prime is trying to be anything but tyrannical, but your flight and fight preservation responses come into play when you go from the supposed top of the control pyramid (as a race) to seeing that there are aliens, they want to live with us, and we are to them similar to the animals that we share the world with to a degree.

Sorry for the long response.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1907889)
Posted by Big Grim on September 1st, 2017 @ 7:26am CDT

Budder Prime wrote:"I prefer to think of everyone else as profoundly deaf."
Once again, Soundwave gives an awesome quote.

Agreed! Absolutely perfect!

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1907925)
Posted by ricemazter on September 1st, 2017 @ 9:42am CDT

Stormshot_Prime wrote:
ricemazter wrote:How can people claim Optimus Prime is tyrannical? How has he affected policy on earth in the slightest aside from providing people with humanitarian aid and fighting other invading aliens? As far as I can tell, he hasn't done anything.

Well, claiming to "Annex" the Earth was a bit extreme. You really have to think about it from our own perspective. If a HUGE attack killed literally a billion people we certainly wouldn't trust the perpetrators, regardless of race. A lot of patters with contemporary issues there. Also Cybertronian are like walking tanks demanding rights so it's a bit scary lol.

But us, knowing Prime, I agree the humans are idiots for not seeing the good and the difference between Bot and Con.

It's a writing gripe because i get the impression tha the writers want us to think what Optimus is doing is morally gray. My point isn't so much that the giant robots aren't scary or that Optimus Prime is totally in the right, saying that you're going to annex a planet is bad. My issue is that for the average human, Prime's has had little to no impact on their lives since his return to Earth beyond saving them from the Decepticons and Junkions.

As far as I can tell, he just has conversations with the US President about picking a Cybertronian council representative (you'd think he'd talk to the U.N. at least once). He hasn't written any new laws or stopped any sovereign governments on Earth from doing exactly what they want to do, which is why this story doesn't work for me.

Prior to this, we really needed that aha moment where Optimus actually exercises some power over humanity. Like, if US forces are in some ambiguous middle eastern nation about to do something not necessarily good yet not necessarily bad and Prime forces them to leave after a tense, televised standoff. Thats just an example, but at least then people could say "wait, Optimus Prime is interfering with US government decisions. Where is this going?" Then people like Joe Colton could have legitimate concerns. As it is, the guy seems like a lunatic for joining Kobra over basically nothing.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1907950)
Posted by Daniel Adkins on September 1st, 2017 @ 12:16pm CDT

It doesn't matter if Optimus Prime has actually done anything to the individual. He is an alien from a race that already destroyed a huge chunk of the human population that is now annexing Earth. Naturally people are going to be on the defensive about what this means for the future of humanity.

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1908013)
Posted by ScottyP on September 1st, 2017 @ 8:55pm CDT

Daniel Adkins wrote:It doesn't matter if Optimus Prime has actually done anything to the individual. He is an alien from a race that already destroyed a huge chunk of the human population that is now annexing Earth. Naturally people are going to be on the defensive about what this means for the future of humanity.

I agree here, this seems to be lost on a lot of folks. There's also that thing that happened in this universe called All Hail Megatron, aka 911,000

Re: Full Preview & Interview with IDW First Strike #1 Writers Mairghread Scott, David Rodriguez #HasbroFirstStrike (1908050)
Posted by ricemazter on September 1st, 2017 @ 11:02pm CDT

ScottyP wrote:
Daniel Adkins wrote:It doesn't matter if Optimus Prime has actually done anything to the individual. He is an alien from a race that already destroyed a huge chunk of the human population that is now annexing Earth. Naturally people are going to be on the defensive about what this means for the future of humanity.
I agree here, this seems to be lost on a lot of folks. There's also that thing that happened in this universe called All Hail Megatron, aka 911,000

My point is that thus far annexation of Earth has no context for anyone involved and no one has a clear idea of what that means since the public hasn't been given any information on what will happen. If people remember AHM, then they should also remember that Optimus Prime and his Autobots specifically stopped the Decepticons from exterminating the human race. Since then, all he's done is give out humanitarian aid, save people from floods and stop yet more alien invasions from the Junkions, the Dire Wraiths, and Baron Karza.

My two cents is just that we needed some kind of extra oomph where Optimus actually exercises power over Earth affairs, not even in a violent way, to make people actually worry about him quite possibly taking over the planet Earth instead of him just giving a speech on TV about the council. That's just what I would need to entertain the humans'/Joe Colton's position.

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