All Hail Megatron #1

Well... hot damn. Now IDW's Transformers line is going to have a summer event, too. Although, to be fair, it isn't much like a normal Marvel or DC event, repeated ad nauseum and still not gotten right. For one, there isn't 20 other books to run spin-offs and tie-ins of the event. And that probably makes it stronger.

IDW's Transformers line initially launched as a proposed series of three six-issue minis, each with a theme based on the general way a conflicted planet goes in the war between the Autobots and Decepticons. First, we have low-key Infiltration. Then, Escalation. The shit starts to hit the fan with Phase 3: Devastation. Throughout these minis, we had a smattering of one-shots called Spotlights, each aiming the spotlight on a certain character within the mythology - not just throw-aways, as the Spotlight issues generally further the story, whether immediately or at a later point.

Now, it's changed. At the end of Devastation, after an all-out battle between the Autobots and Sixshot, and the Decepticons and whatever the badass-bots that were introduced in Sixshot's Spotlight were named, the Autobots left Earth. Something else (events in Arcee's Spotlight) more important than Earth happened, and Optimus was forced to pull his forces off the planet they were losing anyway. On this note, it's a really nice piece inserted to update Transformers for a more modern audience - the Autobots, and Optimus Prime, are still the good guys, still the optimists, but they're fighting a war, and sometimes acceptable losses have to be allowed and hard choices have to be made. The battle for Earth, at the moment, is over. Now, Furman continues to further the story through Spotlights.

The first issue of All Hail Megatron jumps everything forward a year. Who knows what made the Decepticons spend a year before finally making a move - although, there's a bit to suggest that there's more than meets the eye behind what's currently happening - but they're making their move. It's an all-out attack on humankind. We're treated to Guido Guidi's fantastic artwork, complete with a very, very nice coloring job. The Constructicons make their debut, no doubt reinforcements brought in after the few casualties taken in the battle the Decepticons had at the end of Devastation. Starscream and Megatron look to be at odds again, but really, given Starcream's "resurrection" in the pages of Devastation, this shouldn't be too surprising. It might be more surprising as to how Megatron did keep leadership, despite his bots thinking he'd gone insane.

It's a damn good beginning to the story. The last page shows the ruins of Cybertron, where the Autobots are hiding out (for reasons currently unknown). And Prime is a bit under the weather.

If this is where Furman will be leading through the Spotlights and whatever else should start up, and this is where McCarthy (writer of All Hail Megatron) is going to be writing from, well, strap me in for the ride. I want to see how we get there, and I want to see where it goes. The one year jump is not a problem at all, and definitely whets the appetite. It does leave a few questions, though. For instance, there's an Insecticon in the Decepticon line-up. Just a random reinforcement like the Constructicons? Soundwave is present in the Decepticon line-up, and the last time we saw him, wasn't he held by the Machination? And was that Sunstreaker with the Autobots, when at the end of Devastation he had become a Headmaster-bot? The latter could just be me mistaking another bot, surely.

Either way, it'll be neat to see where McCarthy takes this, and who pops up. After all, Sunstreaker/Hunter, Hot Rod, Ironhide, and Grimlock are all operational Autobots currently active on Earth, following the events of Devastation. Whether that applies after the one year gap is possibly something entirely different, though.