The spotlight series continues this month with Transformers Spotlight: Bumblebee. As the name suggests, this focuses on the little yellow Autobot leader. Whilst this will depend on your preferences for Transformers characters, its none the less a decent read from start to finish.

The official description from IDW:

ESCAPE FROM EARTH! Before Cybertron was reborn—BUMBLEBEE lead the Autobots on Earth. In this untold tale, he must take the reigns of command… and he’s got hundreds of rogue Decepticons standing between him and respect!

One of the more noticeable features of this issue is the narration. It starts near the end, then cuts to the beginning, but jumps between the two points a couple of times along the way. Its definitely interesting, but some readers may find it a bit too hectic. Fortunately, the narration from Bumblebee’s perspective justifies this choice and gives more insight into Bumblebee. He’s still a little whiny, but the writing does a good job of capturing a character in self-doubt.

The plot itself isn’t anything special. Bumblebee is looking for rogue Decepticons. Why? Because they’re Decepticons. The premise is simple, but the detail is in the interactions between the Autobots themselves. There is a fair amount of internal struggle and conflict; the Decepticons only provide a fresh enemy to contrast this against.

Thundercracker also makes an appearance, which is a welcome prospect since Transformers Spotlight: Thundercracker did a very good job of highlighting the character (with an appearance from Bumblebee, too). It also serves to tie this issue into the greater continuity, making it feel more connected to the franchise as a whole.

In an odd way, this issue is almost disappointing when read alongside the current Transformers title’s. The end result here shows a well defined and confident Bumblebee. The character depicted in the current setting seems to have regressed somewhat. This obviously isn’t Transformers Spotlight: Bumblebee’s fault, you can’t blame a title for being good, but its an interesting result.

4/5