By now, you know that Void Rivals #1 hides a secret. You might even have been interested. On the next podcast, Ric and I even debate whether or not hiding the relaunch of Transformers in an unrelated title was brilliant marketing or stupid. Turns out that from Skybound/Image’s perspective, it was brilliant. They sold out what was likely an underordered #1 and will release a 2nd printing on July 19 along with Void Rivals #2.
But was it any good?
In terms of character design that may end up as a toy line, kudos to Lorenzo de Felici. The two (so far) protagonists, armored opposing members of warring interstellar races, look good. There’s a familiarity to them, yes, but armored they also stand apart from each other beyond just different colors. Ship design, too, feels simple and fun. I could see these as vehicles in a toy store, and admit that knowing ultimately this launches Hasbro’s new “Energon Universe,” thought for a bit that maybe the Void Rivals were actually Acroyears from the Micronauts. (They are not.)
Already though, rumors swirl that Hasbro’s deal with Marvel may just be for the reprints of that publisher’s material, and that Rom could appear in the Energon Universe. Not that we know anything, but I’ve heard that from a few people that may not know anything either. It’s wish fulfillment for toy fans, and to be honest, for co-creator Robert Kirkman, so is Void Rivals.
You may not know it from the breathless press releases, but this isn’t Kirkman’s first time dancing with Hasbro. In 2015, Hasbro entered a deal with Paramount Pictures to launch Allspark Pictures, with a writers’ room overseen by Akiva Goldsman and including… Robert Kirkman. From that came Bumblebee, Snake Eyes, and the recent Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. Allegedly included as potential for cinematic treatment were M.A.S.K., Visionaries, Micronauts, and ROM.
As there’s little direct connection between what happens between comics and film continuity-wise, it’s fair to speculate that Kirkman has been building up to this for some time. In an essay in the back pages, he admits as much. And hints that yes, the Void Rivals may have toyetic aspirations. You may notice this hasn’t gotten to story quality.
The first issue of Void Rivals borrows heavily from Enemy Mine, which may be just fine as who remembers that film but me? The rivals bicker, fight, threaten, and eventually team up in order to create one working ship from the wreckage of their two. Aided by the “Handroid,” an AI-powered right hand, they might have a shot. (Credit to Kirkman for a great pun and concept there.) What world-building there is stays limited to emphasizing their antagonistic cultures. Then…
Exploring the desolate planet they’ve crashed on, the Void Rivals stumble across a comatose/catatonic/powered down Jetfire. The Transformer wakes up, wonders how long he’s been sleeping, and then leaves. While they take engineering inspiration from that encounter, it just feels like a bid to gain attention for this story, like Spider-Man swinging through every 1st or 2nd issue of new Marvel Comics in the late 1970s. While it might tie this book more directly into what’s going to happen in the forthcoming Transformers relaunch, here it might as well have been the discovery of a wrecked Statue of Liberty. Plus there’s a final page twist that you probably saw coming from the 3rd page.
Is it terrible? No. Is it an auspicious start? No. It just sits firmly in the Mehverse. I’ve read better from Kirkman. Check out Fire Power to see how he can write with jets blazing, not to mention something about Dead Walking.
However, Skybound has plans for both Transformers and G.I. Joe. In addition to their own continuity here, they will continue the publication of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, in continuity from the original Marvel days, carried over to IDW, and still written by one man: Larry Hama. That’s pretty cool. It’s not a book I read (though many of my friends did and do), but that’s the kind of fan service I wholeheartedly support.
If you’re a diehard fan of these properties, of course you want to pick this up. The deluge of reprints and variant covers makes me nervous, though. It’s a model built on teases and repetition, and the same activity caused an implosion of the comics market in the 90s. Not even Cobra Commander accomplished that.
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