Transformers: Days of Decepticon #38 Review

By Edward on Tuesday, March 3rd, 2015

Transformers: Days of Decepticon #38 delivers a somewhat satisfying conclusion to the current arc. Yet, at the same time, it does feel a little cheaty as it steers itself to wards the next big arc. The question, of course, is whether there’s still enough to enjoy here?

The official description from IDW:

THE ONYX INTERFACE! The AUTOBOTS and DECEPTICONS face down human forces—and strange battlelines make for strange allies. Who will emerge with the ancient ENIGMA OF COMBINATION… and who will usher in the COMBINER WAR…?

In terms of action, this issue at least manages to deliver a satisfying amount, building off last month’s ending. While I’ve normally complained about the over focus on human characters with this title, Transformers: Days of Decepticon #38 does manage to strike a better balance – or, at the very least, what the reader’s given does feel relevant and important.

In terms of writing, John Barber closes up a few of the sub-plots, such as the relationship between Thundercracker and Soundwave. Yet, at the same time, this often comes at the expense of other elements, which are sometimes closed up too quickly. The final ending, however, is probably the bit that might sting the most. While it is semi-satisfying, it’s a little out of the blue, choosing to edge the series towards next issue’s big thing rather than delivering something central to the last few month’s worth of comics.

Visually, this all looks very much the same. Andrew Griffith knows his way around Transformers and that’s no exception here. Scale might be an issue sometimes, however, when Griffith has to portray human and transformer-sized characters within the same panel. This is most notable when the panel is rather small. Still, with some decent colors from Josh Perez, there are certainly worse looking titles out there.

All in all, this really isn’t a bad conclusion, but neither is it great. The last few pages tease more than they deliver, so the complete satisfaction some might have expected really isn’t here.