Transformers: Robots In Disguise #13 Review


With the reintroduction of Megatron, its safe to say things aren’t exactly stable in Transformers: Robots In Disguise #13. Bringing in the classic bad guy undoubtedly mixes various things up, but its done in an attempt to be original and unique.

First, the official description from IDW:

ON THE PROWL! It’s “no more mister nice guy,” as CYBERTRON burns and one AUTOBOT is all that stand between order and anarchy. Meet the new PROWL—deadlier than ever, colder then any other AUTOBOT, and ready to end the DECEPTICON threat—forever

Following from the previous issues, things are in a general state of disarray. Whether you like this or not will ultimately depend on how you life your Transformers. The current issues have a strong “Autobots vs Decepticons” theme underpinning everything; classic Transformers, but something that has generally being avoided or worked around in the current post-war setting. Of course, if you go ahead and bring Megatron back (and readers already know that Optimus Prime is out there), then a lot of the older influences are going to come back. If, on the other hand, you preferred the new directions being offered, you might be disappointed with a lot of Robots in Disguise #13.

In terms of actual writing, its still a pleasant read through. The narrative jumps around a bit to suite the purposes of the story, so there isn’t a central character. That said,most portions do follow Starscream, and the writing and perspective here certainly stand out as the most in-depth, and the one which stands out from any other character. With Megatron’s return, the new dynamic between the usual pair is one of the stronger points to this issue, and arguably the series as a whole. For long time fans, the recent developments for various characters, such as Starscream, only really come to light in such circumstances as this.

As for the art of the issue, the standard look and feel is still apparent. That being said, Megatron’s current look is certainly imposing, the art and color making good use of his withered shape. Despite being a wreck, he does look as imposing as ever.

Finally, despite a decent ending, there are still various unanswered questions. Ironhide and the Dinobots are still forgotten about; they’re not even mentioned in this issue. I doubt that conclusion will be happening anytime soon, unless its off-panel.

S#!T Talking Central