Transformers: War Within, Volume 1

Transformers: War Within #1

by Simon Furman, Don Figueroa

This is the epic tale of Optimus Prime's first days at the forefront of the Autobot/Decepticon civil war on Cybertron. It's the untold story of The Transformers as they were, before they came to Earth. Also features a complete cover gallery, sketches, and additional bonus material!

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Science Fiction, Comix

168 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2003

About the author

Simon Christopher Francis Furman is a British comic book writer who is best known for his work on Hasbro/Tomy's Transformers franchise, starting with writing Marvel's initial comic book to promote the toyline worldwide, as well as foundations for both Dreamwave Production's and IDW Publishing's takes on the Generation 1 minifranchise.

Reviews

[Jenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you're like me, the only knowledge you have of Transformers comes from the explosive Michael Bay movies - which I'm complete trash for. But anything outside of that realm goes over my head. As I continue on with my comication, with this volume I was given the beginning. This is the war that is talked about so much in the movies. The reason why the autobots came to Earth. And how Optimus became a Prime.

I adore Optimus. It was really heartbreaking to see him struggle with his new role of being in charge. He wants to protect his people but also knows that the planet is lost. However, Optimus soon finds that not all share his vision of leaving and want to stay and fight. This is a far cry from the leader we now know but it was nice to see how it all began. I love getting more backstories like this one because I feel like it just adds to the established universe and connects everything that much better.

[Jiro Dreams of Suchy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m beginning to realize that many transformers comics fall into the same trap time and time again, not really my cup of tea. The art is somewhat plain, not very unique nor eye catching. The writing is fine but the characters feel very one dimensional, they clearly can be written as these deeper beings but this whole collection feels like it’s an introduction to the series so the characters are just as clearly one note as possible. I didn’t really enjoy this one.

[Trevor Oakley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Set several million years in the past, civil war has erupted on Cybertron, the Transformers’ home world. Sentinel Prime is dead, and the Cybertron elders have picked their information clerk (dare I say LIBRARIAN), Optimus, as his successor. The choice is not popular with every Autobot. General Grimlock believes a leader must be first a warrior, especially given the state of affairs between Autobots and Dicepticons. All is not well among Decepticons either. Starscream looks to usurp Megatron’s authority over the Decepticons and reshape Cybertron in his own image.

Us kids who enjoyed the Transformers circa 1984-1988 will totally dig this book. The story takes place just before the Generation One timeline begins. Autobots roll!

[Kaotic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely an interesting look into the beginning of the war we all know so well.

Cyberton was once so peaceful- but nothing lasts forever. I am interested in seeing how the war continues in the second volume.

This took an good look at Optimus before he was a Prime, and a bit of backstory into what exactly the matrix is that made Optimus a Prime.

My only real complaint here is the book is a little small, therefore the font is a bit hard to read.

I still really enjoyed this.

[Jdetrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's some really interesting ideas in here and some good character work, but at the end of the day I was hoping for more of a look at the early days of the war. I was hoping for something more political, while this was basically just a big adventure in the early days of the war. Good, just not what I wanted.

[Ben · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not much merit to the art or storytelling. The good parts were upcycled into the Transformers Cybertron cartoon. A few fleeting moments of excitement doesn't make this overall a pleasant reading experience.

[Leonardo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fun starting point if you’re wondering why Transformers started looking how it does today. Your answer lies here with Simon Furman. This is a good iteration on the Young Optimus story, and a good story on taking responsibility and not fleeing from the fight with evil.