So, I figure I should follow up on this.
The first issue of Astrobots is out. So...how is it?
Personally, I think it's solid. They've got a good team here. The artwork is better than than you might expect for a smaller indie comic like this. It's detailed and has good coloring, with a nice sense of depth. I'm actually very impressed by the art overall. These designs are MADE to be turned into toys. The writer is Furman, so while I don't think this will change anyone's mind on him, this is solid work.
I like the high concept. Terraforming robots are waiting for new human colonists to come and live with them on the planet they've spent years building for them. Meanwhile there seems to be building discontent with some of the lower-class robots. And a lone older robot comes out of the desert to try to warn the leaders of the city about a looming threat. There's a few mysteries at play and...curious wording. So they're clearly setting up explaining more about the world as the book goes on.
Mech design-wise....it's okay. Only a few of the designs really stand out to me. Atlas and Apollo are probably the two best designs. There's one robot with a drill that I kind of like (Vulkan, I guess, going off the toys). The rest kind of blend into each other a little. But, they're background characters right now, so they're forgiven a little. And they do seem to have a interesting "evolution" going on. There's older robots that are more skeletal-looking. The workers who are all practical bulky types. The human-caretakers which are all feminine and smaller. And the newer robots, like Atlas, look a little sleeker and newer. The designs themselves might be a little too "real robot" for me, but there's some thought put into the world building.
So, basically, this is a pre-war Cybertron book. Or, given the differences, maybe a pre-war Gobots book? There are clearly some...let's be generous and say "parallels" with some Transformers characters. Atlas, the robot in charge of the city, reminds me more of when Starscream was in charge during IDW than Megatron. There's a Ironhide-type. And a "Arcee" There's a legislative council reminiscent of the Senate. And our main character, Apollo, seems to be a "Kup" more or less, maybe.
But, they are doing some new stuff, too. The human involvement feels more organic here than in Transformers. And I think they're setting up a interesting conflict, here. Some of these robots...might not WANT all their hard work to end up in the hands of the humans.
There's enough going on here that I think I recommend it. It's coming out at the JUST right time, honestly. After MONTHS waiting for news on the Transformer comics, this kind of helps fill the void. I say give it a try, if you can get your comic shop to order it for you. It's only a five-issue miniseries to start out with.
ASTROBOTS
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