Agreed! I wouldn't mind seeing more. The designs for Hearts of Steel show that the characters translate very well to other settings in the right hands.
Bro this series is exactly what I was looking for. I know you're early in your journey on youtube but these videos are gold. Can't wait to see how you grow.
It's funny, I'd heard about this book before I had even gotten into the IDW comics and for some strange reason got the idea it came from the Dreamwave era. So when Centurion showed up during phase 2 I was extremely lost.
hearts of steel suddenly being part of the main universe was sure a shock at the time but barber was a master of sorting continuity issues that had plagued the series for years
I like Transformers, I like trains, I like the era. Just the line for me! While it's too bad we didn't get more of it, Shockwave running amok is really all the explanation one needs to retcon convoluted stuff. Or convoluting it.
I do really wish this initiative had more legs, It would've been neat to see other "what if" style transformers comics (hopefully with more consistent artwork and storytelling)
I agree. The idea behind the Evolutions subline was a good one, and I would have liked to see other alternate reality stories come out of it. I guess there was that Deviations one-shot later on showing the events of the movie if Optimus had lived, but it's just not the same.
Dreamwave and Devil's Due Publishing did Transformers in different time periods with the formers Transformers/G.I.Joe crossover in WW2 and the later with the Transformers vs G.I.Joe 2. both of which came out in 2004, 2 years before IDW tried their hand at the concept.
Fantastic post! The Dreamwave series slipped my mind while making this video, and I'm unfortunately not familiar with the Devil's Due series. I know of it, but it's one of those blind spots for me that I need to take care of and finally read.
Thank you, I appreciate the comment and the support! My goal is definitely to get through the whole thing, it's just a matter of how long it'll take...with 13 years of comics, it could take a bit! :)
For sure, in terms of the retcon, it ends up working pretty well and kind of explaining a fair amount in terms of their personalities. But I think it's safe to say that it wasn't Dixon's intent, so I'd say it's more of a point in John Barber's favor.
How cool would a transformers story taking place entirely during the mesozoic era be? I love the designs of the beast form hearts of steel characters and think it would be a cool idea for a comic series. For example the autobots scanning various herbivorious dinosaurs like Optimus as a triceratops or Ironhide as a stegosaurus and the decepticons scanning carnivorous dinosaurs and other large predators at the time like Megatron as a giganotasaurus and starscream and the other seekers as various pterosaurs or blitzwing being both a quezalcoatlus and a carnotasaurus for example.
Heck yeah - I like this idea quite a bit! Having a whole mini series set in this era would be extremely cool. Take the dinosaur-appeal from the Dinobots and apply it to the whole cast - what's not to love about that idea?
@@Moonbase3 I can see the story taking a similar approach to hearts if steel with the autobots and decepticons arriving during the late permain era with the great dying being what forces them into hiding with only a handful of smaller transformers like micromasters for example sticking around to make sure nothing goes wrong while the others are in sleep mode then for the rest of the first chapter it focuses on the smaller transformers in the Triassic taking on alternate modes of early mammals and early dinosaurs. The second and third half could focus on the main cast during the Jurassic and Cretaceous with both sides sharing the fate of the dinosaurs being wiped out by the Cretaceous mass extinction.
@@Moonbase3 I also have an idea for an alternate mode for grimlock that would help him stand out. Instead scanning a tyrannosaurus he crash lands in the ancient Tethys ocean a vast inland sea that ran right through the middle of North America. The alt mode I had in mind is Tylosaurus. The mosasaurs were the kings of the sea so Grimlock is still a king in a sense.
@@TheSandwhichman108 I had to look up Tylosaurus because I wasn't familiar - that would be so cool! I can definitely get behind your line of thinking with giving Grimlock that for an altmode!
3:14/3:15 This is also how I interpret the characters (mostly any non OG Autobots & Decepticons) and events from the Bumblebee & Rise of the Beasts films (along with the portraits and WWII flashback scene from The Last Knight) into my Movieverse headcanon.
The evolution idw comics had so much potential. Imagine if the transformers woke up during let’s say ww2 or when the first cars were invented for example.
I don't have any of them, but I'd like to get the Bumblebee and Optimus someday. I'm out of the loop on them, so I have no idea if there are other characters that have been done. Would love to see a Megatron!
Thanks for the comment. Just to clarify, are you talking about reading order? If so, I'm going through the arcs in something approximating publishing order. If that's not what you meant, please let me know.
I’m suprised we haven’t seen many iterations of the Transformers series in a steampunk setting. The designs look super cool!
Agreed! I wouldn't mind seeing more. The designs for Hearts of Steel show that the characters translate very well to other settings in the right hands.
IDW trying not to retcon its coolest stuff ever (impossible)
Bro this series is exactly what I was looking for. I know you're early in your journey on youtube but these videos are gold. Can't wait to see how you grow.
Great to hear, thanks so much! Your comment really made my day. Much appreciated!
It's funny, I'd heard about this book before I had even gotten into the IDW comics and for some strange reason got the idea it came from the Dreamwave era. So when Centurion showed up during phase 2 I was extremely lost.
"... With the Decepticon schemes derailed." Boing noise. 13:52
3:20 The first of many explanations that can easily be boiled down to ‘Shockwave did it.’
🤣 You're not wrong!
Keep up the good work, dude! I’m really excited to hear more about the IDW series as someone whose never read them personally
Great to hear! Thanks for watching!
hearts of steel suddenly being part of the main universe was sure a shock at the time but barber was a master of sorting continuity issues that had plagued the series for years
Agreed! He did a ton to make the whole continuity feel more cohesive and unified.
@@Moonbase3 yep a vast improvement after the disaster that was transformers continuum
Definitely! Man, Continuum was a mess!
I look forward to seeing more of these! I like the idea of getting IDW's stories in a podcast-style video that's easy to follow
Thank you! Happy to have you along for the ride. More is on the way!
I like Transformers, I like trains, I like the era. Just the line for me!
While it's too bad we didn't get more of it, Shockwave running amok is really all the explanation one needs to retcon convoluted stuff. Or convoluting it.
From what I understand, Evolution's died because IDW starting doing tie-in comics for the movies
Interesting. I didn't come across that information, but the time frame would line up and a shifting of priorities would make sense.
I do really wish this initiative had more legs, It would've been neat to see other "what if" style transformers comics (hopefully with more consistent artwork and storytelling)
I agree. The idea behind the Evolutions subline was a good one, and I would have liked to see other alternate reality stories come out of it. I guess there was that Deviations one-shot later on showing the events of the movie if Optimus had lived, but it's just not the same.
Dreamwave and Devil's Due Publishing did Transformers in different time periods with the formers Transformers/G.I.Joe crossover in WW2 and the later with the Transformers vs G.I.Joe 2. both of which came out in 2004, 2 years before IDW tried their hand at the concept.
Fantastic post! The Dreamwave series slipped my mind while making this video, and I'm unfortunately not familiar with the Devil's Due series. I know of it, but it's one of those blind spots for me that I need to take care of and finally read.
Wouldn't be surprised if someone at IDW saw that and pitched the idea of doing an entire line of alternate time periods.
amazing work, i really hope you can get through all of idw's transformers! love it!
Thank you, I appreciate the comment and the support! My goal is definitely to get through the whole thing, it's just a matter of how long it'll take...with 13 years of comics, it could take a bit! :)
@@Moonbase3 haha well ill try to be there for it all!
Great to hear, thanks! Glad to have you along for the ride!
Great video 👍
Thanks! I appreciate the comment and the support!
To be fair, maybe the bland personalities can be attributed to Shockwave setting up these abducted knock offs as pale imitations of the originals.
For sure, in terms of the retcon, it ends up working pretty well and kind of explaining a fair amount in terms of their personalities. But I think it's safe to say that it wasn't Dixon's intent, so I'd say it's more of a point in John Barber's favor.
This story felt like it was made solely for the transformers designs which are 10/10 imo, wasn't bad but just could've been far more.
I agree. Didn't live up to its potential, that's for sure. At least Guidi's artwork is good!
How cool would a transformers story taking place entirely during the mesozoic era be? I love the designs of the beast form hearts of steel characters and think it would be a cool idea for a comic series. For example the autobots scanning various herbivorious dinosaurs like Optimus as a triceratops or Ironhide as a stegosaurus and the decepticons scanning carnivorous dinosaurs and other large predators at the time like Megatron as a giganotasaurus and starscream and the other seekers as various pterosaurs or blitzwing being both a quezalcoatlus and a carnotasaurus for example.
Heck yeah - I like this idea quite a bit! Having a whole mini series set in this era would be extremely cool. Take the dinosaur-appeal from the Dinobots and apply it to the whole cast - what's not to love about that idea?
@@Moonbase3 I can see the story taking a similar approach to hearts if steel with the autobots and decepticons arriving during the late permain era with the great dying being what forces them into hiding with only a handful of smaller transformers like micromasters for example sticking around to make sure nothing goes wrong while the others are in sleep mode then for the rest of the first chapter it focuses on the smaller transformers in the Triassic taking on alternate modes of early mammals and early dinosaurs. The second and third half could focus on the main cast during the Jurassic and Cretaceous with both sides sharing the fate of the dinosaurs being wiped out by the Cretaceous mass extinction.
I love it! You had me at Micromasters. 🤣 I would read something like this, for sure.
@@Moonbase3 I also have an idea for an alternate mode for grimlock that would help him stand out. Instead scanning a tyrannosaurus he crash lands in the ancient Tethys ocean a vast inland sea that ran right through the middle of North America. The alt mode I had in mind is Tylosaurus. The mosasaurs were the kings of the sea so Grimlock is still a king in a sense.
@@TheSandwhichman108 I had to look up Tylosaurus because I wasn't familiar - that would be so cool! I can definitely get behind your line of thinking with giving Grimlock that for an altmode!
3:14/3:15 This is also how I interpret the characters (mostly any non OG Autobots & Decepticons) and events from the Bumblebee & Rise of the Beasts films (along with the portraits and WWII flashback scene from The Last Knight) into my Movieverse headcanon.
Nice! It's not a bad workaround if a continuity is in need of a retcon. :)
Keep up the great vids!
Thank you, I appreciate that! Thanks for watching!
The evolution idw comics had so much potential. Imagine if the transformers woke up during let’s say ww2 or when the first cars were invented for example.
For sure! It was, unfortunately, cut short far too soon. I would have liked to have gotten all kinds of different settings and time periods.
The third party figures of these designs are AMAZING
I don't have any of them, but I'd like to get the Bumblebee and Optimus someday. I'm out of the loop on them, so I have no idea if there are other characters that have been done. Would love to see a Megatron!
myes 𝐄𝐊𝐋𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐂𝐀𝐋 10:54
🤣 As far as typos go, it's a pretty good one!
What reading do you use for the phases
Thanks for the comment. Just to clarify, are you talking about reading order? If so, I'm going through the arcs in something approximating publishing order. If that's not what you meant, please let me know.
@@Moonbase3 oh, I understand now
Cool, glad to hear! I'm happy to clear up any confusion or answer any questions anytime.