Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye #27 Review

Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye #27 is chapter 10 in the 12-part Dark Cybertron crossover. So, with only two more issues to go, is it starting to become enjoyable?

The official description from IDW:

TOGETHER AT LAST! The crew of the Lost Light and the survivors of CYERTRON get a brief moment of calm as they take stock of who’s survived DARK CYBERTRON this far. But things get worse—the final fate of the DEAD UNIVERSE reveals a nightmarish link to the greatest threat the universe has ever faced!

This issue has some good elements, but most of these have little to do with the Dark Cybertron story. Although the big arc is more manageable, it still feels off and More Than Meets The Eye #27 feels like a ‘calm before the storm’ issue – it makes sense now because its only going to get worse for the last two issues, I’m sure. That said, what is enjoyable is the character interactions – such as Bumblebee and Megatron – that get to the character of the franchise. Heck, this is why More Than Meets The Eye and Robots In Disguise were good, and partly why Dark Cybertron isn’t.

It’s in these elements that James Roberts and John Barber shine. While Optimus Prime and co take a back seat for the most part, the authors focus their writing on the likes of Megatron, Starscream and Chromedome. These are all characters at the core of the franchise, with a big impact in recent events, so the writing here finally starts playing to the strengths of each title. There are interactions here which are either a long time coming or simply quiet rare, so Roberts and Barber take the time to enjoy them.

Visually, we still have a mix of art styles, if only in 2 different forms, from Alex Milne, Brendan Cahill and Livid Ramondelli on pencils and Josh Perez and Livid Ramondelli on colors. The art style is more of the usual approach seen in More Than Meets The Eye and the title is all the better for it. However, in some of the wider panels the art team tries to cram as many characters in at once. Sometimes its subtle, sometimes it feels like a small poster shoved into various scenes – some may like it, others may find it slows down the whole pace of the issue.

Overall, however, this is one of the more enjoyable Dark Cybertron issues and it certainly ends on a decent enough cliffhanger. Hopefully some good will come from the next two issues, if More Than Meets The Eye #27 is anything to go by.