Cover by Don Figueroa
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Welcome to TRANSFORMERS #1, the very first issue of IDW
Publishing’s new TRANSFORMERS ongoing series! We’ve been Color artist James Brown was first introduced to me by colorist
creating TRANSFORMERS comics for roughly five years now, extraordinaire Chris Sotomayor. I hired James for a couple of
and it’s time to amp it up. rush jobs here and there, and was immediately impressed with
his ability to outperform most colorists, but more impressively,
If you’re a fan of the TRANSFORMERS and have been reading do it in record time! James also colors G.I. JOE: ORIGINS for
our comics, we sure hope you enjoy how this issue turned out. IDW. James is clearly the hardest-workin’ man in comics (sorry,
Many of the twists and turns to come should keep it couldn’t resist).
interesting for you. And if you’re worried about older stories
being ignored or contradicted, please don’t. We’re doing our Letterer Chris Mowry is also no stranger to these pages. Chris
very best to make sure we don’t do that (human error has lettered quite a number of TRANSFORMERS comics in his
withstanding). But you won’t see where this is headed just yet. time at IDW and odds are that when he’s not lettering this
book, Neil Uyetake will be taking up the duties.
If you’re joining us for the first time, thanks for giving us a
shot. Hopefully, you found this issue accessible and fun, too. Many thanks go out to the good people at Hasbro who are
Our hope is to get you excited about what we’re doing with a brave enough to let us take our chances with a new kind of
great new starting point. If you’ve got questions now, that’s TRANSFORMERS story and a new direction on the book so
only natural. You should be asking questions about what’s quickly after the last new direction. They’ve been extremely
to come! supportive and enthusiastic about our new TRANSFORMERS
launch, and we here appreciate their continued support. Quite
Now you’ve come to our first letters page. This is the place literally, this issue wouldn’t exist without them.
for you, the fans, to ask your questions and get them into print.
Send e-mails to letters@idwpublishing.com or send snail mail You’ll notice three editorial credits this issue—Denton J.
to us directly at 5080 Sante Fe Street, San Diego, CA 91029. Tipton. Denton has been editing the TRANSFORMERS books for
more than a year. And the fact is, these are hard books to
We’ll have regular series writer MIKE COSTA answering letters, edit, so I was asked to lend him a hand. Carlos Guzman is also
with me filling on the questions he can’t handle (he’s fragile, assisting, and let’s face it, he does all the real work while
after all). Feel free to ask questions not related directly to Denton and I play with Soundwave and Optimus Prime toys. We
this series. If you’re reading a miniseries or a trade paperback are all thrilled to be working on TRANSFORMERS comics and
or whatever that is TRANSFORMERS and IDW-related, send ‘em glad you decided to join us.
to us! We’ll do our best to answer as much as we can.
Coming up next month, don’t miss the launch of the new
Now I’d like to introduce our creative team: BUMBLEBEE miniseries spinning out of events in
TRANSFORMERS #2, and then in January, check out a very
MIKE COSTA joins us hot off the heels of his crazy success different kind of TRANSFORMERS story in TRANSFORMERS:
with the G.I. JOE: COBRA miniseries and special. Mike got his LAST STAND OF THE WRECKERS—a tale set entirely in outer
first comics-writing gig at our friends-down-the-road space with TONS OF ACTION.
Wildstorm, writing several titles for them. I hired him to write
the previously mentioned COBRA series based on one of those And come back here next issue where things go completely
miniseries and a recommendation from mutual friend and bonkers for the Autobots and Mike Costa starts tackling your
comics writer Christos N. Gage. Mike and Christos co-wrote tough questions!
COBRA for me and blew me (and most of the audience) away
with that particular book. Imagine my surprise when Mike Thanks again for picking up the book. We hope you enjoy the
confessed to me that while he loved G.I. JOE, his heart would ride! Speaking of which, it’s about time I transform and roll
always belong to these robotic invaders… out!
DON FIGUEROA needs no introduction to longtime See you next month!
TRANSFORMERS fans. He began illustrating the adventures of
our shape-shifting machines about 10 years ago. His art —Andy Schmidt
immediately fulfilled the promise of the original
TRANSFORMERS toy-marketing campaign. Don’s art was clearly
“more than meets the eye.” We’re happy to welcome Don
back after too long an absence from these pages.
STRONG SEQUENCES OF ACTION VIOLENCE For more information on US film ratings,
AND MAYHEM THROUGHOUT go to www.filmratings.com
© 2009 Paramount Pictures Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
G.I. JOE and all related characters are trademarks of Hasbro and are used with permission. © 2009 Hasbro. All Rights Reserved.
