Transformers
are alien robots of a popular [1] Hasbro toy line and its spin-offs.
Transformers: G1
, includes both the animated television series The Transformers
and the Marvel Comics comic-book series of the same name, which is further divided into Japanese and British spin-offs, respectively. Sequels followed, such as the Generation 2
comic book and Beast Wars
TV series which became its own mini-universe. Generation 1 characters underwent two reboots with Dreamwave in 2002 and IDW Publishing in 2006. There have been other incarnations of the story based on different toy lines during the 2000s. The first was the Robots in Disguise
series, followed by three shows that consist of the "Unicron Trilogy" (consisting of Armada, Energon
, and Cybertron
). A live-action film was also released in 2007 and a sequel has since been released in 2009, again distinct from previous incarnations, while the Transformers Animated
series merged concepts from the G1 story-arc and the 2007 live-action film.
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TRANSFORMERS TICKETS
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Generation One
(1984–1992)
Generation One
(G1) is a
retroactive term for the Transformers characters that appeared between 1984 and 1992. The Transformers began with the 1970s Japanese toy lines
Microman and
Diaclone. The former utilized varying humanoid-type figures while the latter presented robots able to transform into everyday vehicles, electronic items or weapons.
Hasbro, fresh from the success of the
G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero
toyline, which utilised the Microman technology to great success, bought the Diaclone toys, and partnered with
Takara.
[2] Jim Shooter and
Dennis O'Neil were hired by Hasbro to create the backstory, the latter of whom christened
Optimus Prime.
[3] Afterwards,
Bob Budiansky created most of the Transformers characters, giving names and personalities to many unnamed Diaclone figures.
[4] The primary concept of G1 is that the heroic
Optimus Prime, the villainous
Megatron, and their finest soldiers crash land on
pre-historic Earth in the
Ark
and the
Nemesis
before awakening in 1984, Cybertron hurtling through the heavens as an effect of the war.
The Marvel comic was originally part of the main
Marvel Universe, with appearances from
Spider-Man and
Nick Fury, plus some cameos,
[5] as well as a visit to the
Savage Land.
[6]
The Transformers
TV series began around the same time. Produced by
Sunbow Productions, from the start it contradicted Budiansky's backstories. The TV series shows the
Autobots looking for new energy sources, and crash landing as the
Decepticons attack.
[7] Marvel interpreted the Autobots as destroying a rogue
asteroid approaching
Cybertron.
[8] Shockwave is loyal to Megatron in the TV series, keeping Cybertron in a stalemate during his absence,
[9] but in the comic book he attempts to take command of the Decepticons.
[10] The TV series would also differentiate wildly from the origins Budiansky had created for the
Dinobots,
[11] [12] the Decepticon turned Autobot
Jetfire [13] (known as Skyfire on TV
[14]), the
Constructicons (who combine to form Devastator),
[15] [16] and
Omega Supreme.
[17] The Marvel comic establishes early on that Prime wields the
Creation Matrix, which gives life to machines. In the second season, the two-part episode
The Key to Vector Sigma introduced the ancient
Vector Sigma computer, which served the same original purpose as the Creation Matrix (giving life to Transformers), and its guardian
Alpha Trion.
In 1986, the cartoon became a film titled
The Transformers: The Movie
, which is set in the year 2005. It introduced the Matrix as the "
Autobot Matrix of Leadership", as a fatally wounded Prime gives it to
Ultra Magnus however as Prime dies he drops the matrix which is then caught by
Hot Rod who subsequently becomes
Rodimus Prime later on in the film.
Unicron, a transformer who devours planets, fears its power and recreates a heavily damaged Megatron as
Galvatron, as well as
Skywarp becoming
Cyclonus,
Thundercracker becoming
Scourge and the three
Insecticons becoming Scourge's huntsmen, The
Sweeps. Eventually,
Rodimus Prime takes out the Matrix and destroys Unicron.
[18] In the
United Kingdom, the weekly comic book interspliced original material to keep up with US reprints,
[19] and
The Movie
provided much new material. Writer
Simon Furman proceeded to expand the continuity with movie spin-offs involving the
time travelling Galvatron.
[20] [21] The Movie also featured guest voices from
Leonard Nimoy as
Galvatron,
Scatman Crothers as
Jazz,
Casey Kasem as Cliffjumper,
Orson Welles as
Unicron and
Eric Idle as the leader of the Junkions. The Transformers theme tune for the film was performed by Lion with
Weird Al Yankovic adding a song to the soundtrack.
The third season followed up
The Movie
, with the revelation of the
Quintessons having used Cybertron as a factory. Their robots rebel, and in time the workers become the Autobots and the soldiers become the Decepticons. It is the Autobots who develop transformation.
[22] Due to popular demand,
[23] Optimus Prime is resurrected at the conclusion of the third season,
[24] and the series ended with a three-episode story arc. However, the Japanese broadcast of the series was supplemented with a newly-produced
OVA,
Scramble City
, before creating entirely new series to continue the storyline, ignoring the 1987 end of the American series. The extended Japanese run consisted of
The Headmasters
,
Super-God Masterforce
,
Victory
and
Zone
, then in illustrated magazine form as
Battlestars: Return of Convoy
and
Operation: Combination
. Just as the TV series was wrapping up, Marvel continued to expand its continuity. It followed ''The Movie
s example by killing Prime [25] and Megatron, [26] albeit in the present day. Dinobot leader Grimlock takes over as Autobot leader. [27] There was a
G.I. Joe
crossover [28] and the limited series
The Transformers: Headmasters'' which further expanded the scope to the planet
Nebulon.
[29] It led on to the main title resurrecting Prime as a
Powermaster.
[30]
In the United Kingdom, the mythology continued to grow.
Primus was introduced as the creator of the Transformers, to serve his material body that is planet
Cybertron and fight his nemesis
Unicron.
[31] Female Autobot
Arcee also appeared, despite the comic book stating the Transformers had no concept of gender, with her backstory of being built by the Autobots to quell human accusations of sexism.
[32] Soundwave, Megatron's second-in-command, also
broke the fourth wall in the letters page, criticising the cartoon continuity as an inaccurate representation of history.
[33] The UK also had a crossover in
Action Force
, the UK counterpart to G.I. Joe.
[34] The comic book featured a resurrected Megatron,
[35] whom Furman
retconned to be a
clone [36] when he took over the US comic book which depicted Megatron as still dead.
[37] The US comic would last for 80 issues until 1991, and the UK comic lasted 332 issues and several
annuals.
Generation 2
(1992–1995)
It was five issues
[38] of the
G.I. Joe
comic in 1993 that would springboard a return for Marvel's Transformers, with a new twelve-issue series entitled
Transformers: Generation 2
, to market a new toy line. The UK comic came back for five issues and an annual. This story revealed that the Transformers originally breed
asexually, though it is stopped by Primus as it produced the evil
Swarm.
[39] A new empire, neither Autobot or Decepticon, is bringing it back, however. Though the year-long arc wrapped itself up with an alliance between
Optimus Prime and
Megatron, the final panel introduced the
Liege Maximo, ancestor of the Decepticons.
[40] This minor cliffhanger was not resolved until 2001 and 2002's Transforce convention when writer
Simon Furman concluded his story in the exclusive novella
Alignment
.
[41]
Beast Wars
/Machines
(1996–2001)
The story focused on a small group of
Maximals (led by
Optimus Primal) and
Predacons (led by
Megatron), 300 years after the "Great War". After a dangerous pursuit through
transwarp space, both the Maximal and Predacon factions end up crash landing on a primitive, uncivilized planet similar to
Earth, but with two moons and a dangerous level of Energon, which forces them to take organic beast forms in order to function without going into stasis lock.
[42] After writing this first episode,
Bob Forward and
Larry DiTillio learned of the G1 Transformers, and began to use elements of it as a historical backstory to their scripts,
[43] establishing
Beast Wars
as a part of the
Generation 1
universe through numerous callbacks to both the cartoon and Marvel comic. By the end of the first season, the second moon and the Energon are revealed to have been constructed by a mysterious alien race known as the
Vok.
The destruction of the second moon releases mysterious energies that make some of the characters "
transmetal" and the planet is revealed to be prehistoric Earth, leading to the discovery of the
Ark
. Megatron attempts to kill the original
Optimus Prime,
[44] but at the beginning of the third season, Primal manages to preserve his spark. In the two-season follow-up,
Beast Machines
, Cybertron is revealed to have organic origins, which Megatron attempts to stamp out. Although the organic origin of Cybertron, the presence of female characters and
Starscream's appearance hinting at his demise in
The Transformers: The Movie
brought the series closer to the G1 TV series, the appearance of
Ravage's intelligent Marvel incarnation
and the comics only terms the
Ark
left the show in a gray area of "a"
Generation 1
.
Since then, the saga has been increased. After the first season of
Beast Wars
(comprising 26 episodes) aired in Japan, the Japanese were faced with a problem — the second Canadian season was only 13 episodes long, not enough to warrant airing on Japanese TV. So, while they waited for the third Canadian season to be completed (thereby making 26 episodes in total when added to season 2), they produced two exclusive cel-animated series of their own,
Beast Wars II
(also called
Beast Wars Second
) and
Beast Wars Neo,
to fill in the gap. Dreamwave
retroactively revealed
Beast Wars
to be the future of their G1 universe,
and the 2006 IDW comic book
Beast Wars: The Gathering
eventually confirmed the canonicity of the Japanese series with appearances of the Japanese characters
[45] within a story set during Season 3.
[46]
Dreamwave Productions (2002–2005)
In 2002,
Dreamwave Productions began a new universe of comics adapted from Marvel, but also included elements of the cartoon. The Dreamwave stories followed the concept of the Autobots defeating the Decepticons on Earth, but their 1999 return journey to
Cybertron on the
Ark II
[47] is destroyed by
Shockwave, now ruler of the planet.
[48] The story follows on from there, and was told in
two six-issue limited series, then a ten-issue ongoing series. The series also added extra complexities such as not all Transformers believing in the existence of
Primus,
[49] corruption in the Cybertronian government that first lead
Megatron to begin his war
[50] and Earth having an unknown relevance to Cybertron.
[51]
Three
Transformers: The War Within
limited series were also published. These are set at the beginning of the Great War, and identify Prime as once being a clerk named Optronix.
[52] Beast Wars
was also
retroactively stated as the future of this continuity, with the profile series
More than Meets the Eye
showing the
Predacon Megatron looking at historical files detailing Dreamwave's characters and taking his name from the original Megatron.
[53] In 2004, this real life universe also inspired three novels
[54] and a
Dorling Kindersley guide, which focused on Dreamwave as the "true" continuity when discussing in-universe elements of the characters. In a new twist, Primus and Unicron are siblings, formerly a being known as The One.
Transformers: Micromasters
, set after the
Ark's disappearance, was also published. The real life universe was disrupted when Dreamwave went bankrupt in 2005.
[55] This left the
Generation One
story hanging and the third volume of
The War Within
half finished. Plans for a comic book set between
Beast Wars
and
Beast Machines
were also left unrealized.
[56]
G.I. Joe crossovers (2003 onwards)
Throughout the years, the G1 characters have also starred in crossovers with fellow Hasbro property
G.I. Joe, but whereas those crossovers published by Marvel were in continuity with their larger storyline, those released by Dreamwave and G.I. Joe publisher
Devil's Due Publishing occupy their own separate real life universes. In Devil's Due, the terrorist organization
Cobra is responsible for finding and reactivating the Transformers. Dreamwave's version remagines the familiar G1 and G.I. Joe characters in a
World War II setting, and a second limited series was released set in the present day, though Dreamwave's bankruptcy meant it was cancelled after a single issue. Devil's Due had Cobra re-engineer the Transformers to turn into familiar Cobra vehicles, and released further mini-series that sent the characters travelling through time, battling
Serpentor and being faced with the combined menace of
Cobra-La and
Unicron.
IDW Publishing has expressed interest in their own crossover.
[57]
IDW publishing (2005 onwards)
The following year,
IDW Publishing rebooted the G1 series from scratch within various
limited series and
one shots. This allowed long-time writer of Marvel and Dreamwave comics,
Simon Furman to create his own universe without continuity hindrance, similar to
Ultimate Marvel.
[58] Furman's story depicts a Cybertron that the rogue
Pretender Thunderwing destroys,
[59] so the
Autobots and
Decepticons have to infiltrate various planets for their resources.
Earth comes under particular scrutiny due to a particularly potent form of
energon which
Shockwave had seeded thousands of years ago,
[60] with the Decepticons escalating political tensions by replacing people with clones.
[61] The
Ark
origin is absent in this series.
[62] The continuity was also the first to acknowledge the existence of mass displacement
# in transformations, such as when Megatron downsizes himself into a gun.
[63]
Alternative stories
In January 2006, the
Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club
comic wrote a story based on the
Transformers Classics toy line, set in the Marvel Comics universe, but excluding the
Generation 2
comic. Fifteen years after
Megatron crash lands in the
Ark
with
Ratchet, the war continues with the characters in their
Classics
bodies.
[64]
IDW Publishing introduced
The Transformers: Evolutions
in 2006, a collection of mini-series that re-imagine and reinterpret the G1 characters in various ways. To date, only one miniseries has been published,
Hearts of Steel
, placing the characters in an
Industrial Revolution-era setting. The series was delayed as
Hasbro did not want to confuse newcomers with too many fictional universes before the release of the
live-action film.
[65]
However, IDW and the original publisher
Marvel Comics announced a crossover storyline with the
Avengers to coincide with the film, entitled
New Avengers/Transformers
.
[66] The story is set on the borders of
Symkaria and
Latveria, and its
fictional universe is set between the first two
New Avengers
storylines, as well in between the
Infiltration
and
Escalation
phase of IDW's
The Transformers
.
[67] IDW editor-in-chief, Chris Ryall hinted at elements of it being carried over into the main continuities,
[68] and that a
sequel is possible.
[69]
Robots in Disguise
(2001–2002)
Broadcast in 2001,
Robots in Disguise
was a single animated series, imported from Japan (where it was broadcast the previous year), consisting of thirty-nine episodes. In this continuity, Megatron creates the Decepticons as a subfaction of the Predacons on Earth, a potential reference to the return to the vehicle-based characters following the previous dominance of the animal-based characters of the
Beast
eras. It is a stand-alone universe with no ties to any other Transformers fiction, though some of the characters from
Robots in Disguise
did eventually make appearances in
Transformers: Universe
, including Optimus Prime,
Side Burn and
Prowl.
The Unicron Trilogy (2002–2006)
These three lines, launched in 2002 and dubbed the "
Unicron Trilogy" by
Transformers
designer
Aaron Archer,
[70] are co-productions between Hasbro and Takara, simultaneously released in both countries, each lasting 52 episodes.
Armada
followed the Autobots and Decepticons discovering the powerful
Mini-Cons on Earth, which are revealed by the end to be weapons of
Unicron.
Energon
, set ten years later, followed the Autobots stopping the Decepticons from resurrecting Unicron with
energon.
In Japan, the series
Transformers: Cybertron
showed no ties to the previous two series, telling its own story. This caused continuity problems when Hasbro sold
Cybertron
as a follow-up to
Armada/Energon
. The writers attempted to change certain plot elements from the Japanese version to remedy this, although this largely added up to nothing more than references to Unicron.
Just as Marvel produced a companion comic to
Generation One
,
Dreamwave Productions published a comic entitled
Transformers Armada
set in a different continuity to the cartoon. At #19, it became
Transformers Energon
. Dreamwave went bankrupt and ceased all publications before the storyline could be completed at #30. However, the Transformers Fan Club published a few stories set in the
Cybertron
era.
[71]
Transformers: Universe
(2003–2006)
The storyline of
Transformers: Universe
, mainly set following
Beast Machines
, sees characters from many assorted alternate continuities, including existing and new ones, encountering each other. The story was told in an unfinished comic book exclusive to the Official Transformers Collectors' Convention.
Film franchise (2007–present)
In 2007, a
live action film of Transformers was directed by
Michael Bay and written by
Roberto Orci and
Alex Kurtzman. The main focus of the film revolved around the creator of the Transformers, which in the film is described as the
Allspark, as well as their home planet
Cybertron. The film portrayed the Allspark as a large cube of energy that can create life from mechanical objects. During the Cybertronian Civil War, the Allspark was sent off the planet and eventually landed on Earth, where it was discovered by the U.S. government and the
Hoover Dam was built over it as a top-secret research facility and government base. Megatron searched for the Allspark and eventually found Earth, but he crash-landed in the Arctic and was frozen. Many years later he was found and also brought to the same facility as the Allspark. With their homeworld ravaged by war, the Autobots were dispersed throughout space. But a group of Autobots led by Optimus Prime traveled to Earth in search of the Allspark, in an attempt to revitalize their planet. However, the Decepticons also race towards Earth to find the Allspark, as well as their leader, Megatron. The film depicts the battle over the Allspark on Earth. The Transformers are depicted as mechanical beings that can reconstruct their outside appearance through scanning or touching a mechanical object of relative size to each Transformer's body.
[72]
To market the film,
IDW Publishing published
Transformers: Movie Prequel
. The comic expanded upon
Optimus Prime's referral to Megatron as "brother", revealing they co-ruled
Cybertron before Megatron's corruption. Furthermore, Optimus sent the Allspark into space in a last-ditch attempt to defeat Megatron. Megatron is responsible for
Bumblebee's
muteness in the film, as a direct result of distracting him from the Allspark's launch.
[73] Alan Dean Foster also wrote a prequel novel entitled
Transformers: Ghosts of Yesterday
. The novel shows that
Starscream hated Megatron and wanted him to never be found, so he could remain as leader, explaining Megatron's line in the film: "You failed me, yet again, Starscream."
Blackout is also depicted as deeply loyal to Megatron, explaining his line "All hail Megatron!" However, the novel contradicts the film with Megatron's body moved into the
Hoover Dam in 1969, instead of the 1930s.
[74] IDW plans to continue the film's fictional universe with additional prequels and sequels.
[75]
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
, the sequel to the 2007 film, made its debut in theaters on June 24, 2009.
In June, 2009, Paramount confirmed that a third Transformers film would be released on July 1, 2011. However, on his official website Michael Bay said that Paramount has made a "mistake", and that its actual release date will be in 2012.
[76]
Transformers Animated
(2008)
The
Cartoon Network (United States)-produced
Transformers Animated
is a cartoon that aired in early 2008.
Originally scheduled for late 2007 under the title of
Transformers: Heroes
,
[77] Transformers Animated
is set in 2050
Detroit (after crash landing years earlier),
[78] when robots and humans live side-by-side.
The
Autobots come to Earth and assume
superhero roles, battling evil humans with the
Decepticons having a smaller role until Megatron resurfaces.
[79] Main characters include Autobots Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, Bulkhead, Prowl, Ratchet, Decepticons Megatron, Starscream, Blitzwing, Lugnut, and human characters Professor Sumdac and Sari Sumdac. Several characters that were in the original Transformers cartoon and 1986 animated movie, as well as characters only seen in comics and such, make special appearances and cameos throughout the show. To mention a few: Soundwave, Wreck-Gar, Ironhide, Brawn, Rodimus, Oil Slick, Perceptor, Blackout, Strika, Spittor, Cyclonus, Metroplex, Red Alert, Hot Shot, Cliffjumper, Mainframe, Wheeljack, Alpha Trion, Warpath, and many more, as inside jokes and to please the fans.
References
- Coolest Toys
- Hasbro Publishes Transformers Timeline to Movie
- A Little Q&A With Bob Budiansky
- Bob Budiansky
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Jim Salicrup | penciller = Frank Springer | story = Prisoner of War! | title = The Transformers | issue = 3 | date = January 1985 | publisher = Marvel comics}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Bob Budiansky | penciller = William Johnson | story = Repeat Performance! | title = The Transformers (U.S.A) | issue = 8 | date = September 1985 | publisher = Marvel comics}}
- More than Meets the Eye
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Bill Mantlo | penciller = Ralph Macchio | title = The Transformers (U.S.A.) | issue = 1 | date = September 1984 | publisher = Marvel comics}}
- Transport to Oblivion
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Bob Budiansky | penciller = Alan Kupperberg | story = The New Order | title = The Transformers (U.S.A) | issue = 5 | date = June 1985 | publisher = Marvel comics}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Jim Salicrup | penciller = Frank Springer | story = The Last Stand | title = The Transformers (U.S.A.) |issue=4|date=March 1984|publisher=Marvel comics}}
- S.O.S. Dinobots
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Bob Budiansky | penciller = Herb Trimpe | story = Brainstorm! | title = The Transformers (U.S.A.) | issue = 11 | date = December 1985 | publisher = Marvel comics}}
- Fire in the Sky
- The Secret of Omega Supreme
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Bob Budiansky | penciller = Ricardo Villamonte | story = The Next Best Thing to Being There! | title = The Transformers (U.S.A.) | issue = 9 | date = November 1985 | publisher = Marvel comics}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Bob Budiansky | penciller = Don Perlin | story = Command Performances | title = The Transformers (U.S.A.) | issue = 19 | date = August 1986 | publisher = Marvel comics}}
- The Transformers: The Movie (1986)
- The Rise and Fall of Transformers UK
- Simon Furman (w), Jeff Anderson, Geoff Senior, Will Simpson, Ron Smith (p), "Target: 2006" ''The Transformers (U.K)'' #78-88 1986-09-13 - 1986-11-22 Marvel UK
- Simon Furman (w), Andrew Wildman, Robin Smith, Dan Reed, Lee Sullivan (p), "Time Wars" ''The Transformers (U.K)'' #199-205 1989-01-07 - 1989-02-18 Marvel UK
- Five Faces of Darkness — Part 4
- Hasbro Can't Toy with Optimus Prime
- The Return of Optimus Prime
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Bob Budiansky | penciller = Don Perlin | story = Afterdeath! | title = The Transformers (U.S.A.) | issue = 24 | date = January 1987 | publisher = Marvel comics}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Bob Budiansky | penciller = Don Perlin | story = Gone But Not Forgotten! | title = The Transformers (U.S.A.) |issue = 25| date = February 1987 | publisher = Marvel comics}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Bob Budiansky | penciller = Don Perlin | story = King of the Hill! | title = The Transformers (U.S.A.) |issue = 27| date = April 1987| publisher = Marvel comics}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Michael Higgins | penciller = Herb Trimpe | story = Blood on the Tracks, Power Struggle, Ashes, Ashes... All Fall Down | title = G.I. Joe and the Transformers | issue = 1-4 | date = January-April 1987 | publisher = Marvel comics}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Bob Budiansky | penciller = Frank Springer | story = Ring of Hate! Broken Glass! Love and Steel! Brothers in Armor! | title = The Transformers: Headmasters | issue = 1-4 | date = July-October 1987 | publisher = Marvel comics}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Bob Budiansky | penciller = Jose Delbo | story = People Power! | title = The Transformers (U.S.A.) | issue = 42 | date=July 1988 | publisher = Marvel comics}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Simon Furman | penciller = Jeff Anderson | story = The Legacy of Unicron (Part 5) | title = The Transformers (UK) | issue = 150 | date = 1988-01-30 | publisher = Marvel UK}}
- {{Comic book reference | Writer = Simon Furman | Penciller = Andrew Wildman | Story = Prime's Rib! | Title = The Transformers | Issue = 234 | Date = 1989-09-09 | Publisher = Marvel UK}}
- Sound waves Vs the Transformers cartoon
- Simon Furman (w), Geoff Senior (p), "Ancient Relics!" ''Action Force'' #24-27 1987-08-15 - 1987-09-05 Marvel UK
- {{Comic book reference | Writer = Simon Furman | Penciller = Geoff Senior | Story = Ancient Relics Part 1 | Title = The Transformers (U.K.) | Issue = 125 | Date = 1987-08-08 | Publisher = Marvel UK}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Simon Furman | penciller = Geoff Senior | story = Two Megatrons! | title = The Transformers (U.K.) | issue = 244 | date = 1987-11-18 | publisher = Marvel UK}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Simon Furman | penciller = Jose Delbo | story = Back from the Dead! | title = The Transformers (U.S.A.) | issue = 56 | date=September 1989 | publisher=Marvel comics}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Larry Hama | penciller = Andrew Wildman, Stephen Baskerville, Chris Batista, Jesse Orozco, William Rosado | story = Unfoldings!, Realignments, Goin' South, Sucker Punch, Final Transformations | title = G.I. Joe | issue = 138-142 | date = July-November 1993 | publisher = Marvel comics}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Simon Furman | penciller = Manny Galan | story = The Power and the Glory | title = Transformers: Generation 2 | issue = 5 | date = March 1994 | publisher=Marvel Comics}}
- {{Comic book reference | Writer = Simon Furman | penciller = Manny Galan | Story = A Rage in Heaven! | Title = Transformers: Generation 2 | Issue = 12 | Date = October 1994 | Publisher = Marvel comics}}
- Alignment
- Pilot (Part 1)
- Interview with writer Bob Forward
- The Agenda
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Simon Furman | penciller = Don Figueroa | title = Beast Wars: The Gathering | issue = 1 | date = 2006-02-15 | publisher = IDW Publishing}}
- Interview — IDWs Ryall & Furman Talk Beast Wars Comic
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Chris Sarracini | penciller = Pat Lee | title = Transformers: Prime Directive | issue = 1 | date = April 2002 | publisher = Dreamwave}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Brad Mick | penciller = Pat Lee | title = Transformers: War and Peace | issue = 6 | date = September 2003 | publisher = Dreamwave}}
- Brad Mick, Adam Patyk (w), Don Figueroa (p), "Original Sin" ''Transformers: Generation One'' #5, May 2004, Dreamwave Productions
- James McDonough, Adam Patykand (w), Don Figueroa (p), "The Route of All Evil" ''Transformers: Generation One'' #10, December 2004, Dreamwave Productions
- Brad Mick, Adam Patyk (w), Don Figueroa (p), "Atonement" ''Transformers: Generation One'' #6, June 2004, Dreamwave Productions
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Simon Furman | penciller = Don Figueroa | title = Transformers: The War Within | issue=1 | date = October 2002 | publisher = Dreamwave Productions}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Adam Patyk, Brad Mick | penciller = Joe Ng, James Raiz, Edwin Garcia, Don Figueroa, Alex Lin | title = Transformers: More than Meets the Eye | issue = 8 | date = November 2003 | publisher = Dreamwave}}
- The Transformers Trilogy
- Immediate Press Release — Dreamwave will be ceasing operations!
- Starting the beast war: dreamwave talks tformers: beast war
- BotCon 2006 - Transformers Comics: Past, Present & Future
- Simon Furman talks Stormbringer
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Simon Furman | penciller = Don Figueroa | title = The Transformers: Stormbringer | Issue = 1 | date = July 2006 | publisher = IDW Publishing}}
- {{Comic book reference | Writer = Simon Furman | penciller = Nick Roche | Title = The Transformers Spotlight: Shockwave | Issue = 1 | Date = September 2006 | Publisher = IDW Publishing}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Simon Furman | penciller = E.J. Su | title = The Transformers: Escalation | issue = 2 | date = December 2006 | publisher = IDW Publishing}}
- Caught in the Nexus: Simon Furman
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Simon Furman | penciller = E.J. Su | title = The Transformers: Escalation | issue = 3 | date = January 2007 | publisher = IDW Publishing}}
- {{Comic book reference | writer=Forest Lee|penciller=Dan Khanna|story=Crossing Over|title=Hasbro Transformers Collectors' Club|date=January/February 2006|issue=13|publisher=Fun Publications}}
- IDW's Plans For Transformers Revealed At The 2006 San Diego Comic Con
- New Avengers/Transformers
- Stuart Moore Talks New Avengers/Transformers
- Ryall answers fans' questions on TF/Avengers crossover
- NYCC, DAY 2: MOORE, ROSEMANN AND RYALL TALK “NEW AVENGERS/ TRANSFORMERS”
- Hasbro Cartoon Creation Panel
- Transformers Comics For April 2007 From IDW
- Transformers (film)
- {{Comic book reference | writer = Simon Furman, Chris Ryall | penciller = Don Figueroa | title= Transformers: The Movie Prequel | issue=1 | date=2007-03-06 | publisher=IDW Publishing}}
- Transformers: Ghosts of Yesterday
- Sdcc '07: idw panel report
- Entertainment
- Next TF Cartoon Series: "Transformers Heroes"?
- ‘TRANSFORMERS’ BACK TO TV
- New Transformers Series Coming to Cartoon Network