Transformers #1 »
"They're not gonna catch us. We're on a mission from Primus."
"The World In Your Eyes Part One"
Publisher	IDW Publishing
First published	March 13, 2019
Cover date	March 2019
Written by	Brian Ruckley
Art by	Angel Hernandez (pg. 1-9, 14-20), Cachét Whitman (pg. 10-13)
Colors by	Joana Lafuente
Letters by	Tom B. Long
Editor	David Mariotte and Tom Waltz
Continuity	2019 IDW continuity

Cybertron is a utopia, a living mechanical planet that's full of opportunities for a recently forged 'bot named Rubble. But as Bumblebee and Windblade show Rubble what his life could be, they discover that all is not well in their idyllic world...

Synopsis

It's evening on Cybertron as the recently forged Transformer Rubble excitedly scales the face of a "mountain"—in reality, the gargantuan countenance of an ancient, crumbling Transformer—to take in the sunset... much to the consternation of his new mentor Bumblebee, who's been put in charge of escorting the freshly forged Cybertronian to an Energon engineering station run by Brainstorm out in the remote badlands. This tour of the planet's civilization is a rite of passage for all young Cybertronians, a chance to meet with different professions in anticipation of choosing an alternate mode and future career; while Bumblebee wants to keep schedule, Rubble just wants to see everything... and as he races up yet another ridge and loses his balance, the exasperated Bumblebee can only try to keep up.

Rubble slithers to the bottom of the ditch, where he's found by a Voin scavenger; though the organic alien is initially curious about the little Transformer, they quickly scatter when Bumblebee's old friend Windblade arrives. Meeting up with her former teammate, Windblade explains that she's been dispatched by Security Operations to investigate the same Energon transmission station, after Brainstorm reported some anomalies with the station's monitoring equipment. The innocent Rubble, unaware of Windblade's concerns that something greater might be afoot, is just eager to have met a new friend, and so the three head out together.

Elsewhere, Senator Orion Pax gazes down at the latest in a series of Ascenticon marches and worries for the future—worries that only intensify when Ironhide tells him that his appointment is here to see him. Dismissing Ironhide's concerns that the situation may already be too far gone, Pax sits down to meet with none other than Megatron, his fellow senator and, more recently, the impromptu leader of the Ascenticon movement.

Orion Pax tries to get his compatriot to see reason and postpone his latest rally in Tarn, pointing out that Megatron's demonstrations have been becoming increasingly violent as of late; their last rally alone was responsible for injuring a dozen individuals. Megatron isn't having it, however, and points out that he wants to see change on Cybertron, and as long as he's free to do so then he'll continue to speak his mind. As Megatron stands to leave, Pax asks him what kind of speech he'll give... but as he walks out the door Megatron simply tells him that how Orion chooses to interpret his words is up to him, brushing off Ironhide in the process.

As the stars come out, Rubble is entranced by the shimmering mechanical surface of Cybertron, and even more by Bumblebee's own pair of headlights. Bumblebee reminds him that the little Transformer may one day receive his own headlights when he chooses his alternate mode and a career, but Rubble is apprehensive; how long did it take them to choose their lives? Bumblebee gently explains that their choices aren't fixed, and points out that he recently left Cybertron's security division to focus on search and rescue work. Windblade points out that it wasn't entirely his choice to leave security, but before either 'bot can explain the situation further, Rubble's attention is drawn by a shooting star... or, rather, as Windblade explains, a Titan, one of several gigantic, slumbering Cybertronians who have chosen to defend Cybertron from all extra-planetary threats.

Over the next ridge, the group arrives at the Energon station, and while Bumblebee prepares to show Rubble inside, a broken window draws Windblade's attention. Drawing her sword, the security officer tells Bumblebee to help sweep the area, and for Rubble to stay put. Rubble does what he's told... or rather, he does what he's told until the sound of sparking wires piques his curiosity, prompting him to investigate. It's a good thing he does, because it doesn't take long until he finds the source: Brainstorm's dead body!

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Quotes

"Your life is yours to shape. In doing so, you owe nothing to those who came before you. But you owe everything to those as yet unforged. Let no shaping of yours, limit what they, in their turn, might yet be and achieve."

—One of Termagax's writings

"Rubble's devoted himself to introducing himself to as many things as possible. Aliens, terrain, gravity, everything."

—Bumblebee

"You remember that time Prowl was stuck under a collapsed pylon for ten cycles?"
"I do. Half his rescuers requested esteem-reinforcement counseling afterwards. Two of them still cannot be around him without their joints freezing."
"Exactly. He's not gone Full Prowl, but he's not far off."

—Ironhide and Orion Pax discuss Megatron's emotional state

"Perhaps, for the sake of our friendship, you could at least tell me what sort of speech you plan to give? The kind I merely disagree with, or the kind that needs security teams on the ground by the time you have finished speaking?"

—Orion Pax, to Megatron

Notes

Continuity notes

• And we're back! Transformers is the first true "reboot" of the brand under IDW since their original continuity that began in 2005 with Infiltration issue #0, and ended in 2018 with Optimus Prime issue #25.
• Released at the same time as the Siege toyline, it should come as no surprise that several characters are depicted with bodies based off their concurrently available toys, most notably Megatron, Ironhide, and Orion; Orion, however, is not based off his Voyager Class toy, but rather his Leader Class "Galaxy Upgrade" figure. One notable exception is Brainstorm, who, rather than being based off any of his Generations toys, is drawn more-or-less identically to his appearance in More than Meets the Eye and Lost Light.
• Windblade swears on the name of Primus, as Cybertronians have in many previous Transformers continuities. What constitutes Cybertronian religion in this universe would be expanded upon in future issues.
• The issue opens with a quote attributed to an original female Transformer known as Termagax, with the Ascenticons later chanting her name during their march.

Transformers references

• Rubble refers to being "forged," a term first used in the original IDW run and originally established as one of several forms of reproduction available to the Cybertronian species; the term seems to have been adopted by Hasbro in the interim as the coverall Cybertronian linguistics equivalent of "born," so we shall have to see what the creation of a new Cybertronian entails in this continuity...
• An exasperated Bumblebee wonders if his voice box is defective, which is the case for many other characters named "Bumblebee" across the Transformers multiverse, but most famously his live-action film series counterpart.
• The city of Tarn is flagged up as the intended destination for the Ascenticon marchers.
• Excepting Ruckus and a barely-visible Elita-1, the participants in the Ascenticon rally appear to be mere generics, though one is colored like Kup.
• The Ascenticon logo—a purple, upward-pointing arrow, thematically appropriate for a faction named for "ascension"—is designed to look like an upside-down prototypical Decepticon insignia, portending the inevitable future path Megatron and his followers will go down.
• Megatron's status as an outspoken rhetorician is by now a staple of the character; the concept first saw use in the original IDW continuity, and went on to inform several other continuities, though his status here as a charismatic politician working "within the system" to achieve his aims hews closer to his more recent Cyberverse incarnation.
• The mighty 'bots known as Titans make a return from the first IDW continuity, where the term was originally coined and used to describe various giant Transformers like Metroplex; like "forged," this term subsequently became the default name for all giant Transformers throughout the franchise.
• The term "full Prowl" was last used in Lost Light #10. It also involved emulating Prowl's reputation for being a bad-tempered prick.

Real-life references

• It probably goes without saying that Megatron's self-styled "Ascenticons" and their habit of volatile rallies are very reminiscent of various radical political groups, both historical and contemporary.

Errors

• There seems to be a slight art/dialogue mismatch on page 20: Windblade tells Bumblebee to check "the other building," but the art of the Energon transmission station on the preceding page seems to depict only one building.

Other trivia

• Backmatter for the issue includes an exclusive interview between writer Brian Ruckley and prior Transformers writer-turned editor John Barber.
• This issue starts a trend dedicating full pages to the alternate covers. In this particular issue however, since there are 12 covers, the first 4 were given full pages, while the rest were in mini-form on the interior back cover.
• This issue is available on Hasbro's War for Cybertron page by entering the code "RUBBLE."

Covers (14)

• Cover A: Megatron and Orion Pax, by Gabriel Rodríguez and Nelson Dániel.
• Cover B: Rubble, Orion, Megatron, and Bumblebee, by Angel Hernandez and Joana Lafuente.
• Retailer incentive cover A: Prowl, Windblade, and Chromia, by Casey W. Coller and Josh Burcham.
• Retailer incentive cover B: Orion, Bumblebee, and Chromia, by Freddie E. Williams II and Andrew Dalhouse.
• Retailer incentive cover C: Foil variant of RI cover B.
• The Fellowship exclusive cover: Optimus Prime on a war-torn battlefield, by John Gallagher.
• Comic Books for Kids exclusive cover: Optimus visits a hospitalized child while Kremzeek looks on, by Ninjaink.
• Showcase Comics exclusive cover: Decepticons assembled, by Robby Musso.
• Wondercon exclusive cover: Orion, Megatron, and Chromia, by E. J. Su.
• One Stop Comic Shop exclusive cover A: Heroes over Cybertron, by Jeff Edwards and Steve Lydic.
• One Stop Comic Shop exclusive cover B: Uncolorized version of One Stop Comic Shop exclusive cover A.
• Metal exclusive cover: Partially colored version of Cover A.
• Second printing cover: A grayscaled background version of Cover B, by Angel Hernandez and Joana Lafuente.
• Third printing cover: A grayscaled Rubble version of Cover B, by Angel Hernandez and Joana Lafuente.

• 

  Cover A

• 

  Cover B

• 

  Cover RI-A

• 

  Cover RI-B

• 

  Cover RI-C

• 

  Fellowship cover

• 

  Comic Books for Kids cover

• 

  Showcase Comics cover

• 

  Wondercon cover

• 

  One Stop Comic Shop cover A

• 

  One Stop Comic Shop cover B

• 

  Metal exclusive cover

• 

  Second printing cover

• 

  Third printing cover

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• Sonic the Hedgehog Annual (back cover)

Reprints

• Transformers Volume 1: The World In Your Eyes (January 22, 2020) ISBN 1684055318 / ISBN 978-1684055319
  • Collects Transformers (2019) issues #1–12.
  • Bonus material includes alternate covers.
  • Hardcover format.

• Transformers: The Definitive G1 Collection Volume 98: The World In Your Eyes (October 7, 2020)
  • Collects Transformers (2019) issues #1–7.
  • Bonus material includes a cover gallery, a Q&A with series writer Brian Ruckley, and an intro by Simon Furman.
  • Hardcover format.

• 

  Volume 1: The World In Your Eyes – cover art by Cryssy Cheung

• 

  The Definitive G1 Collection Volume 98: The World In Your Eyes – cover art by Dreamwave (Quake) and Cachét Whitman

External links

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