Publisher: IDW Publishing
Writers: Chris Metzen and Flint Delle
Artist: Livio Ramondelli
Release Date: 19th November 2014

So, the grand finale the Transformers’ war for Cybertron. Does it cut the mustard? Well, yes, I rather think it does – it may not be perfect or filled with profound revelations, but it’s satisfying and meaty.

Let’s get the leg work out of the way. Stonking cover? Check. Sly comedy variant cover? Check. Brain-achingly good variant Sarah Stone cover? Very Check. The art is brisk and dynamic throughout, haunting in places, even: the level of emotion conveyed by even the relative blank countenance of Optimus is striking. Ramondelli is fast becoming one of my favourite artists, in any bit of the medium you care to name.

There’s some lavish panels and spreads in this issue, but never at the expense of the narrative, which flows well. I’ve had some concerns about the writing of the combiners: the Stunticons still seem tokenistic to me, with Motormaster being reduced to a drive-by with Optimus – but the work on the Predacons in particular is outstanding; lifting the most tedious and underrated of the combiners through strong writing has been a real star moment in this run for me. The subtle reinvention of the Dinobots as counterpoint to them has been a revelation also; clever and internally consistent without being contrived.

Megatron’s big (self-) reveal in the issue runs the danger of being likewise unconvincing, but has enough bite that you believe both it and Optimus’s desperate belief in the capacity for his redemption. True heroism there. And as for the climax? Well, it’s fitting, and draws it to a good close overall. I do feel that Metzen and Delle’s writing has tried to cram an awful lot into Primacy, and though it is a little rushed towards the end, on balance it’s a sound conclusion to a key part of the TF canon.

Rating: 4/5.

The Writer of this piece was: Sam Graven
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