10 Best Transformer Comics From the Marvel Era, Ranked

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The original Transformers comic books were handled by Marvel Comics, with the company having a huge hand in defining the earliest elements of the brand. This included the name of the iconic Autobot leader Optimus Prime, with several other Transformers concepts debuting in these comics. Given how influential this era was on the brand as a whole, it’s no surprise that some of the best stories in the franchise were published by Marvel.

The best Marvel Transformers comics built upon and developed major concepts, becoming pivotal in the brand’s overall mythology. Some were in the main comic book, while others were in the UK version of the title. Regardless of where they were published, they proved that the comic was just as instrumental as the 1980s Transformers cartoon in defining what a generation knew about the robots in disguise.

Issue(s): Transformers UK #113-114 by Simon Furman and Geoff Senior

The events of The Transformers: The Movie were mostly canon in the Marvel comic books, but what happened afterward was far different. The storyline “Wanted: Galvatron – Dead or Alive” focused on the aftermath of The Transformers: The Movie, namely by introducing the idea that Galvatron traveled to the past in the comic books. This also saw the Marvel bounty hunter Death’s Head chase him down as new Autobot leader Rodimus Prime tried to acclimate himself to his new role.

“Wanted: Galvatron – Dead or Alive” was a great way to differentiate between the comic book and cartoon continuity, namely because it featured the fan-favorite Death’s Head. It also showcased the differences between Autobots and Decepticons, with their morality being quite distinct, even in times of war. Best of all, it makes it obvious that Rodimus is a far different leader from Optimus, for better or worse.

Issue(s): Transformers UK #199-205 by Simon Furman, Robin Smith, Dan Reed and Lee Sullivan

The “Time Wars” story arc united both Megatron and his later form of Galvatron, with this done through a rift in time itself. Unfortunately, this rift creates a black hole that threatens to consume Earth and Cybertron. Likewise, a similar civil war between the present-day and future Decepticons forced the Autobots and Decepticons to team up to defeat their common enemies.

This story notably featured Optimus Prime in his new Powermaster body, with the Autobot leader able to take on both Megatron and Galvatron. Likewise, the situation showed the limits of Decepticon loyalty, with even Scourge questioning Galvatron’s instability. The conclusion left major ramifications for the present-day Autobots, namely when it came to the cast of the story (which no longer featured Rodimus Prime).

8

The Underbase Saga Saw Several Transformers Offlined by a Cosmically Powered Starscream

Issues: Issue(s): Transformers#47-50 by Bob Budiansky and José Delbo

The “Underbase Saga” featured one of many McGuffins in the Transformers franchise, with the Underbase being similar to the Creation Matrix/Matrix of Leadership and the Allspark. In fact, the cube-like item inspired the shape of the Allspark in the Michael Bay Transformers movies. With several Decepticons vying for its power, it instead fell to the traitorous Starscream, who used it to a lethal degree.

Issue #50 of Marvel’s Transformers allowed the writers to easily kill off many of the comic’s characters, with several of them being phased out by Hasbro anyway. This was done by having them offlined by a cosmically powered Starscream, who used the Underbase to effortlessly kill them. While characters such as Bumblebee came back in one form or another, many of Starscream’s Autobot and Decepticon victims were gone for good after this story.

7

Target: 2006 Featured Several Classic Concepts

Issue(s): Transformers UK #78-88 by Simon Furman, Jeff Anderson, Ron Smith and Geoff Senior

The storyline “Target: 2006” introduced and expanded upon several narrative elements from The Transformers: The Movie, with Autobot leader Optimus Prime going missing in the story. Unfortunately, this is matched with the arrival of Galvatron, Cyclonus and Scourge, who are three powerful Decepticons from the future. Thankfully, several other Autobots are seen in the story that round out the overall cast of the comic book.

“Target: 2006” featured characters such as the Wreckers, with this Autobot strikeforce debuting in the comics before going to to be seen in other continuities. There was also an epic battle between Galvatron and Ultra Magnus, with the former’s Decepticon forces made out to be a truly sadistic threat. This includes them torturing the Autobot Jazz, with each of their action tied to a greater plan by the Chaos Bringer Unicron himself.

6

City of Fear! Was a Transformers Horror Story

Issue(s): Transformers UK #164-165 by Simon Furman and Dan Reed

Most of the Marvel Transformers comics have an action-adventure tone, but one set of issues has a downright horrifying nature. The “City of Fear!” storyline features Ultra Magnus and the Autobots against an army of robotic “zombies,” with these undead creatures seen in the Cybertronian city of Kalis. There’s a strong sense of terror, with even the evil Dupcons afraid of what will happen to them in the cursed city.

“City of Fear” showcased how far the franchise could go in terms of scope when removed from its usual status quo. This was especially the case as the Transformers comic book continued and went beyond its initial setting on Earth. It was also one of the first examples of a zombie apocalypse scenario seen in the Transformers brand, and best of all, it was tied to a deeper mystery within Cybertron.

Issue: Transformers: Generation 2#5 by Simon Furman and Manny Galan

Transformers: Generation 2 was a short-lived comic book that tried, along with its toyline, to revive the then-dormant brand in the early 1990s. In the comics themselves, the “second generation” Transformers were led by Jhiaxus, who, despite his villainy, wasn’t a Decepticon. In the series’ fifth issue, Optimus Prime learned the truth about the species and how Jhiaxus’ faction came to be.

It was revealed to Prime that Transformers initially reproduced by molecular “budding”, molting new bodies from their own instead of using the Creation Matrix. This caused them to deter from Primus’ path, making them ruthless and emotionless. The story proved pivotal to the series’ mythology and explained what could have been just a gimmicky title following a toyline, all while further developing fan-favorite Jhiaxus.

Issue: Transformers#28 by Bob Budiansky and Don Perlin

After the second year of Marvel’s Transformers comic book, Optimus Prime was out of commission, having been killed off just as he had in the animated movie in 1986. Taking over for him was the ruthless Dinobot leader Grimlock, who showed no mercy to those he deemed weak. This was seen in the series’ 28th comic book, which pitted the Autobots against a human criminal who used Cybertronian technology.

“Mechanical Difficulties” proved that Grimlock’s brutality made him an ill-fit for the leadership of the Autobots, as he had intended to deal with human villain, the Mechanic, with extreme prejudice. The issue even saw loyal Autobots such as Bumblebee (who was turned into Goldbug by that point) turn against Grimlock, illustrating that it wasn’t just the Decepticons who had infighting. The Mechanic was one of the many human villains in the series, with this concept seen again years later in the cartoon Transformers Animated.

3

Car Wash of Doom Is One of the Most Infamous Transformers Comic Book Stories

Issue: Transformers#31 by Bob Budiansky and Don Perlin

“Buster Witwicky and the Car Wash of Doom” is a rather notorious Transformers tale due to its somewhat silly nature, but it proved pivotal for one Decepticon in particular. The story involved the earthbound Decepticons using a car wash as a ploy to gain energy, with this scheme envisioned by then-leader Ratbat. Unlike in the cartoon, Ratbat was actually a cunning leader of the Decepticons in the comics, and his car wash scheme was a surprisingly good idea.

“Car Wash of Doom” was a big step in making Ratbat a big deal in the franchise, and his prominence was seen in several later Transformers comic books. It also cemented the robots in disguise, having their requisite corporate enemy in the rich industrialist G.B. Blackrock. While it might have seemed somewhat gimmicky, namely for its title referencing the second Indiana Jones movie, this title is one of the most remembered Marvel Transformers tales of them all.

2

The Transformers #5 Had a Deadly Message for Readers

Issue: Transformers #5 by Bob Budiansky and Alan Kupperberg

Transformers was initially just meant to be a four-issue miniseries, but it continued to become an ongoing Marvel title. This was seen in its fifth issue, which notably had a cover featuring the logical Decepticon Shockwave amid a message that the other Transformers were “all dead.” The story was titled “The New Order,” with Shockwave seemingly deactivating all of the Autobots and repairing his Decepticon allies.

This story made Shockwave into a much bigger deal than he was in the cartoon, giving him a logic-driven persona that also made him dangerous to Megatron instead of blindly loyal to him. G.B. Blackrock made his debut in the issue, as did the woman who later became the villainous Circuit Breaker. Even a later retconned scene involving the head of Optimus Prime essentially introduced the Creation Matrix, making the first “ongoing” title of Transformers one of the most important.

Issue: Transformers #61 by Simon Furman and Geoff Senior

The origin of the Transformers was different in the cartoon and the comic books, as shown in the beginning of the seventh year of the comic’s publication. Transformers #61 finally showcased the concept of Primus, the creator of the Transformers, with his alternate mode being the planet Cybertron itself. This story also first established that he was the brother of the evil Chaos Bringer Unicron, with this fiendish creature being the devil to Primus’ god of light.

“The Primal Scream” ends with a scream from Primus being heard by Unicron, reigniting the brothers’ feud slowly but surely. It was pivotal in starting many of the ideas that have informed the current version of the Transformers species’ origins, namely the ties to Primus and even the 13 original Primes. In many ways, this was the Marvel comic series’ biggest contribution to the mythos, and its effects are still felt in modern media.

“}]] The Transformers comic book by Marvel was recently funded for a modern reprinting, and the series featured several classic stories and issues.  Read More