IDW Transformers: Armada Omnibus Reprint Preview

Tuesday, March 29th, 2016 4:18AM CDT

Category: Comic Book News
Posted by: Va'al Views: 24,393

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You might remember the old Dreamwave comics series, with all their ups and downs, and how IDW started reprinting them in collected editions - that was also the case for Transformers: Armada, and we all now have a chance of purchasing that 18 issues in one again! Check out a sneaky preview below...

Transformers: Armada Omnibus
Chris Sarracini, Simon Furman (w) • James Raiz, Pat Lee, Guido Guidi, Don Figueroa (a) • Guido Guidi (c)
The DECEPTICONS, feeding off the energy of captured Mini-Cons, are about to begin a hostile takeover of the TRANSFORMERS' home planet, CYBERTRON. Do OPTIMUS PRIME and the heroic AUTOBOTS stand a chance of defending the planet against these super-powered villains? And will the Mini-Cons ever get their freedom back? The action is so explosive that the shockwaves will shake not only CYBERTRON but even planet Earth right down to the core. All 18 issues of Transformers: Armada are collected in this omnibus.
TPB • FC • $29.99 • 416 pages • 6” x 9” • ISBN: 978-1-63140-563-1

Bullet points:
Back in print!

Credit(s): IDW

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Re: IDW Transformers: Armada Omnibus Reprint Preview (1776198)
Posted by Randomhero on March 29th, 2016 @ 7:07am CDT

I don't even know why. It's not like what was done with energon can be reprinted because they don't know who got paid for what so they can put it all out.

Re: IDW Transformers: Armada Omnibus Reprint Preview (1776202)
Posted by griftimus prime on March 29th, 2016 @ 7:35am CDT

if only pat lee did not run the company into the ground.

Re: IDW Transformers: Armada Omnibus Reprint Preview (1776208)
Posted by Randomhero on March 29th, 2016 @ 8:05am CDT

griftimus prime wrote:if only pat lee did not run the company into the ground.

He wasn't the only one. No one at DW knew how to run a business. After dreamwave they made dream engine and he was removed from that company only for it to go under as well by his brother.

Re: IDW Transformers: Armada Omnibus Reprint Preview (1776239)
Posted by Amelie on March 29th, 2016 @ 9:54am CDT

griftimus prime wrote:if only pat lee did not run the company into the ground.

I'm glad Pat Lee is no longer involved in Transformers. I always thought his art-style was bad and that poorness permeated all through the in-house style. I remember excitedly buying the very first Dreamwave G1 6 issue miniseries each month (when it wasn't getting delayed) and was left feeling a little deflated with the poor writing and "static" artwork. Even Furman's writing for The War Within, which I also bought felt wrong and Don Figueroa's art whilst technically accomplished lacked any 'life' to it, much like Pat Lee's did.

There is more character writing and life in the MTMTE previews than whole story-arcs of Dreamwave.

Re: IDW Transformers: Armada Omnibus Reprint Preview (1776264)
Posted by Randomhero on March 29th, 2016 @ 12:24pm CDT

Amelie wrote:
griftimus prime wrote:if only pat lee did not run the company into the ground.

I'm glad Pat Lee is no longer involved in Transformers. I always thought his art-style was bad and that poorness permeated all through the in-house style. I remember excitedly buying the very first Dreamwave G1 6 issue miniseries each month (when it wasn't getting delayed) and was left feeling a little deflated with the poor writing and "static" artwork. Even Furman's writing for The War Within, which I also bought felt wrong and Don Figueroa's art whilst technically accomplished lacked any 'life' to it, much like Pat Lee's did.

There is more character writing and life in the MTMTE previews than whole story-arcs of Dreamwave.

By issue 3 of the first G1 mini with the fight in Arctic you can see it was being drawn by someone else. It instantly changed and everyone became puffy and ridiculous.

Armada suffered the same fate. James Raiz was forced to draw anime and he could not do it. He participated in a Q&A on an issue of Armada energon or G1 and he was asked what's the hardest part about drawing for Dreamwave and he said it was being told he had to draw like pat and had to draw like he was working on a manga.

The 2 issue star saber story is one of the worst drawn comics in transformers where actual pictures and toy promo pieces were traced and put in panels.

Don's art was all poses and zero respect for story telling or physical space. Nobody remembers that. The dude just put transformers in these awful pat Lee squating poses and no one cared because he redesigned them all in Cybertronian designs and that's all the people at the time wanted. He'd hide Japanese in the backgrounds and play it off as Cybertronian language. Ugh

Ironic how a few years later IDW had EJ Su, AN ACTUAL MANGA ARTIST, being the main transformers artist for a couple years and people bitched it was too manga for transformers.

I miss EJ on transformers...

Re: IDW Transformers: Armada Omnibus Reprint Preview (1776265)
Posted by Randomhero on March 29th, 2016 @ 12:34pm CDT

I mean look at the last page of the preview and at megatron and how he is standing. His entire stomach and waste are being crushed by his chest! And what is going on with his arms?

No respect for how physical space works. And this James first run with transformers! It's really bad.

Anyone interested in drawing transformers, buy this and write on the cover "HOW TO NOT DRAW COMICS AND TRANSFORMERS"

Re: IDW Transformers: Armada Omnibus Reprint Preview (1776286)
Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on March 29th, 2016 @ 2:13pm CDT

I can't say much regarding Pat Lee since he was many years before my time, but when I bought all the IDW comics for G1 back last May and I got and read them all, I was very impressed with EJ Su's work. It was really cool and I loved it. He had some good art, and I enjoyed the early IDW comics a lot. :MAXIMAL:

Re: IDW Transformers: Armada Omnibus Reprint Preview (1776304)
Posted by Randomhero on March 29th, 2016 @ 2:52pm CDT

D-Maximus_Primal wrote:I can't say much regarding Pat Lee since he was many years before my time, but when I bought all the IDW comics for G1 back last May and I got and read them all, I was very impressed with EJ Su's work. It was really cool and I loved it. He had some good art, and I enjoyed the early IDW comics a lot.

Personally I would not recommend reading this than. It never fully finished and it never will be. Armada does have an ending but leads right into energon and it only 12 issues in before it went under. Don't spend money, just look them up on Tfwiki if you're intetesed in the story

When dreamwave came out I was 17 and I like most thought this was the best it could ever get. By 20 I was like "this is some of the worst art and story telling I've seen in transformers. It took me to Devastation to actually get into IDWs universe, personally I wasn't into what they were doing but by the time sixshot showed up on earth I was on board.

Re: IDW Transformers: Armada Omnibus Reprint Preview (1776306)
Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on March 29th, 2016 @ 3:00pm CDT

Randomhero wrote:
D-Maximus_Primal wrote:I can't say much regarding Pat Lee since he was many years before my time, but when I bought all the IDW comics for G1 back last May and I got and read them all, I was very impressed with EJ Su's work. It was really cool and I loved it. He had some good art, and I enjoyed the early IDW comics a lot.

Personally I would not recommend reading this than. It never fully finished and it never will be. Armada does have an ending but leads right into energon and it only 12 issues in before it went under. Don't spend money, just look them up on Tfwiki if you're intetesed in the story

When dreamwave came out I was 17 and I like most thought this was the best it could ever get. By 20 I was like "this is some of the worst art and story telling I've seen in transformers. It took me to Devastation to actually get into IDWs universe, personally I wasn't into what they were doing but by the time sixshot showed up on earth I was on board.

The comic that got me was Spotlight: Trailcutter. Trailguy is my favorite, and when I got his toy I got the comic, and having remembered seeing all of Va'al's reviews for MTMTE (Which I read but really didn't get) I started looking into it more, and thus the comic storm began :MAXIMAL:

Re: IDW Transformers: Armada Omnibus Reprint Preview (1776320)
Posted by Randomhero on March 29th, 2016 @ 3:58pm CDT

It's one of the best spotlights. Shockwave is still my favorite however but that's because its shockwave. Hard to believe he's been gone for 2 years now. Bumblebee too.

It's hard to believe DW did transformers 14 years ago. I can't even imagine that if they didn't go under they'd still have the license and if they did what stories would we be getting now.

It was a different time and they pretty much were blowing their wad at the beginning. By the second year they were already working toward Unicron. Unicron was 6 months away when they collapsed and they had already introduced every character from 84 to 86 and were craming everything possible just for nostalgiic purposes. It really didn't feel like they had long term goals.

This is IDWs 11th year with transformers, the war is over but it feels like they could put out another 11 years worth of stories. Who would have thought ending the war would just create better stories than continuing it.

Re: IDW Transformers: Armada Omnibus Reprint Preview (1776325)
Posted by Cyberstrike on March 29th, 2016 @ 4:17pm CDT

Randomhero wrote:This is IDWs 11th year with transformers, the war is over but it feels like they could put out another 11 years worth of stories. Who would have thought ending the war would just create better stories than continuing it.

I didn't. I was wrong and I'm glad to be proven wrong so many times since then.

Re: IDW Transformers: Armada Omnibus Reprint Preview (1776347)
Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on March 29th, 2016 @ 5:07pm CDT

Cyberstrike wrote:
Randomhero wrote:This is IDWs 11th year with transformers, the war is over but it feels like they could put out another 11 years worth of stories. Who would have thought ending the war would just create better stories than continuing it.

I didn't. I was wrong and I'm glad to be proven wrong so many times since then.

The fact that the war is over and they have gone now over 4 years with post war comics and they are still going strong and look to continue that, it is amazing. :MAXIMAL:

Re: IDW Transformers: Armada Omnibus Reprint Preview (1776371)
Posted by Randomhero on March 29th, 2016 @ 6:21pm CDT

D-Maximus_Primal wrote:
Cyberstrike wrote:
Randomhero wrote:This is IDWs 11th year with transformers, the war is over but it feels like they could put out another 11 years worth of stories. Who would have thought ending the war would just create better stories than continuing it.

I didn't. I was wrong and I'm glad to be proven wrong so many times since then.

The fact that the war is over and they have gone now over 4 years with post war comics and they are still going strong and look to continue that, it is amazing.

Two years this month Megtron put on an autobot symbol and renounced the Dcepticons and I know some people are waiting for him to put back on the deception badge but after two years and what's going on in MTMTE and TF it doesn't feel like that'll happen in IDW again. He doesn't have to be the leader, there can be others and dare I say IDW galvatron is becoming a scarier leader than Megatron. Megtron believed he was fighting for equality and all that, Galvatron is all "we are the dominant race and everything should belong to us."

Re: IDW Transformers: Armada Omnibus Reprint Preview (1776373)
Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on March 29th, 2016 @ 6:30pm CDT

Randomhero wrote:
D-Maximus_Primal wrote:
Cyberstrike wrote:
Randomhero wrote:This is IDWs 11th year with transformers, the war is over but it feels like they could put out another 11 years worth of stories. Who would have thought ending the war would just create better stories than continuing it.

I didn't. I was wrong and I'm glad to be proven wrong so many times since then.

The fact that the war is over and they have gone now over 4 years with post war comics and they are still going strong and look to continue that, it is amazing.

Two years this month Megtron put on an autobot symbol and renounced the Dcepticons and I know some people are waiting for him to put back on the deception badge but after two years and what's going on in MTMTE and TF it doesn't feel like that'll happen in IDW again. He doesn't have to be the leader, there can be others and dare I say IDW galvatron is becoming a scarier leader than Megatron. Megtron believed he was fighting for equality and all that, Galvatron is all "we are the dominant race and everything should belong to us."

All true. I am very glad he has stayed an autobot and looks like he will. I like this new take on Megatron. :MAXIMAL:

Re: IDW Transformers: Armada Omnibus Reprint Preview (1776442)
Posted by King Kuuga on March 30th, 2016 @ 3:51am CDT

It seems like Megatron has to become a Decepticon again eventually, because status quo is god in ongoing comics, but I'm perfectly fine with them exploring Megatron the Autobot for a good five years or more.