Daily Comic Book Mission #038: Transformers #2 (Energon Universe)

Recording these back‑to‑back, if you’re listening in sequence, you’re like, why does Mark hate Bumblebee so much. Because Bumblebee sucks. He’s like the Jar Jar of talking, transforming vehicles. What’s the first thing Bumblebee does in the Marvel Comics version of Transformers issue number one. What’s the first memorable thing he does. He cock‑blocks Buster. Way to go, Bumblebee. Buster’s at the drive‑in movie, got his girlfriend in the car or whatever, and Bumblebee crashes into him and then brings an interstellar war to the planet. It’s all Bumblebee’s fault. Starscream did us all a favor in the previous issue.

Your Daily Comic Book Mission today is Transformers issue number two from Image Comics and Skybound Entertainment, continuing in the Energon Universe series. I love this series. Like I said in the previous episode, this is my favorite current comic book series. And this one opens up with Optimus Prime, who knows better than to cock‑block anyone, but he does not know better than to step on a deer. But to be fair, deer are like squirrels but bigger. As a Pennsylvanian, really, we could do with less deer. Thank you, Optimus, though I hope you turned that into some venison later. Put it on a hot dog bun, it’s really good. Highly recommended.

Where was I. Optimus is admiring nature while I’m sitting here talking about eating it. Well, that’s why I don’t lead the Transformers. And we get some backstory on the war for Cybertron. Like I said in the previous Daily Comic Book Mission, the Energon Universe is similar to the Marvel Comics series in terms of plot and character development, but different. So I guess it’s kind of like the whole Absolute thing from DC Comics. You get a very different style of Transformers, a little more hard‑edge. But the whole basic premise that Cybertron’s at war, the Transformers leave, the Decepticons attack them, they crash‑land on Earth, Jetfire and Teletran‑1 reanimate them as Earthen forms like jet fighters and cassette players and trucks. But still no eight‑track player. I’m looking at you, Hasbro. What do you have against eight‑tracks. Wood grain. How sweet would a wood‑grain Transformer be. Its name could be Disco. Optimus Prime. Megatron. Shockwave. Disco would be best friends with Jazz, hands down. I love Jazz. I love that Jazz was voiced by Scatman Crothers. The Transformers series nailed it with actors. Peter Cullen, Scatman Crothers. I mean, come on. Jazz got killed in The Shining.

Anyway, on with issue two here, which you totally need to read if you love the Transformers. Get into this series. I think you’ll love it as much as I do. While the Decepticons are raiding a power station, which is what they always do, a military jet gets called in to investigate, an F‑18, and in the back seat is none other than Duke from G.I. Joe. So this is actually really early in the G.I. Joe series. There’s also a standalone G.I. Joe series, which is somewhat confusing because Image is also publishing G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero. Two totally different universes. G.I. Joe with the little Energon Universe logo is the one that fits into this universe, but Transformers is better, to be honest. It just is.

Anyway, Starscream attacks the jet. They eject, and he squashes yet another human with his hands. Duke escapes, and he takes this experience with him into the G.I. Joe series. And we get Laserbeak in here, Optimus having a heart‑to‑heart with humans. And then we learn that it was Carly’s dad who was squashed in the previous issue by Starscream. It’s a good issue. I love the maniacal look on Skywarp’s face when he crashes into the power plant. Daniel Warren Johnson does the illustrations, once again also the writer, and brings so much action and expression to the Transformers.

Is it better than the Marvel series. They’re great for different reasons. I think the Image and Skybound Transformers series, to their credit, has been more consistent. Though I also love the classic Transformers. All Transformers are good Transformers, especially when Bumblebee gets shot in the first issue.

So that’s your Daily Comic Book Mission. Continue the series and get into this one. Transformers issue number two from 2023. While we’re on the subject of wood‑grain Transformers, what kind of vehicle would Disco be? A custom van. You know, they actually—well, you’ll see. There is a custom van Transformer coming up in this series. I guess I should give that away. It takes a bunch of issues to get there, but there is a custom van Transformer.

But we do not have an AMC Eagle Transformer or an El Camino Transformer that I’m aware of. It seems unfair that we got a microscope Transformer and not an El Camino. Who wants to play with a microscope. Speaking of things that transform into things, I think we’re up to issue thirty as of this recording. We still haven’t seen Grimlock and the Dinobots yet. They allude to them in some recent issues, but still nothing.

Anyway, start this series from the beginning. It’s worthwhile. Trade paperback, get it out of the library, whatever. Transformers from Image and Skybound is your daily comic book mission from ComicBook.beer. Oh, and you can now subscribe to ComicBook.beer. There’s a little subscribe button. We’ll make it fancier in the future, but if you never want to miss anything, subscribe and we’ll send you emails using our Sega Dreamcast email server, which has a 2400‑baud modem. The emails are very slow, but they’ll get to you eventually.