I preordered Transformers: The Ultimate Guide as soon as i saw the name "Simon Furman" attached to it. I know I am not alone when I say that I believe Furman to be the single greatest creative mind ever to be attached to the Transformers. That he would be writing a book about the history of the entire franchise was a tantalizing prospect to say the least. I got this book in my hands yesterday, and thought I would share my thoughts on it.

 

This book is a comprehensive overview of Transformers, including the comics, cartoons, and toys. It begins by explaining the origin of the toy line, and how Hasbro and Takara worked together to build the foundations of the franchise. It describes the history of the Transformers and features brief plot summaries of the comics and television series. It also has detailed diagrams of many things, such as Cybertron, the Ark, Optimus prime and Megtron. Other key characters in the series are featured in small biographies. Moving from G1 into the Beast Wars era, then to Beast Machines, RiD, Armada and Energon, the book describes each of the series in the various forms they took.

 

First, let me touch on what is left out of the book, to get that out of the way. The book is under 200 pages, so obviously not every TF is featured or mentioned. A book that included pictures and bios on every transformer ever created would have to be at least 1000 pages. Instead, it focuses on main characters. Also, the summaries for television episodes are not complete-- the book focuses mainly on the episodes that build the Transformers mythology and progress the storyline. While the toys are discussed in several parts of the book, there is no mention of any of the other collectible merchandise from the Transformers franchise. The biggest omission is any information about the Japanese Transformers and series that were exclusive there. The book discusses Tranformers from a decidedly western perspective rather than a global one.

 

Another part of the book that is sure to be a subject of contention is that it establishes a "single" continuity for Transformers as best it can, excluding Armada/Energon and RiD. Now, in several places, Furman admits that there are definitely continuity errors in the universe. Of the creation stories for the Transformers, he chooses the Primus story, and mentions later that there are rumors that the Quintessons may have had something to do with the creation of the Transformers (referring to the cartoon's back story). I have always preferred the comic back story, so this was not a big deal to me. But I can see how it would irk some people who are adamant about separating the two continuities.

 

Basically, this book is not intended to be an end-all, be-all encyclopedia of the Transformers world. Instead, it covers 20 years worth of (extremely convoluted) continuity, numerous toy lines, and dozens of television episodes in its limited space by giving a wide overview of the material. This is an excellent coffee table-type book for anyone who wants to understand the franchise better. It is also a good introduction to the older material for younger Transfans who came on board with Beast Wars or even more recently. It is a great collector's item for all fans, as it has a lot of new artwork in it as well.

 

Anyone else who read it have any thoughts?

still waiting for my copy to come it. I'll let you know when I get it.

I heard on TFormers that Furman is only selling 50 Now I'm never gon'na get it. :tfsad

cheak it out

http://www.TFormers.com/article.php?sid=2867&mode=flat

No those are special editions, there are only 50 of those, but the regular version is being produced in mass numbers.

Anyone know when it'll be in bookstores?

It may already be available. Amazon has it right now!

Diamond shipped it yesterday, so it should be in stores now. I know my copy arrived at my comic shop.

Hmm....I wonder if it is as good as they say.

I've had mine since last Sat., and I think it was a good investment. I can hand this book to someone not as versed in TF history/background and have him/her be reasonably up-to-speed in a couple hours. It is good about addressing inconsistencies in the storyline and is descriptive in what it does address. I enjoyed it and it was worth the money!

 

:thumb :thumb

this book was friggin awesome. I was concerned that it wouldn't be comprehensive enough given that it's only 144 pages. But sure enough, it came through. This book covers the G1 cartoon and movie, the G1 and G2 comics by Marvel US and Marvel UK, Beast Wars, Beast Machines, Robots in Disguise, Armada, Energon, and Dreamwave's comics. Simon Furman proved that he truly is the man when it comes to TFs, seemlessly integrating cartoon, Marvel, and Dreamwave continuity in this book. Also gave us hints as to what lies ahead in the G1 ongoing. All in all, an excellent guide to the TF mythos, and I would recommend this both longtime transfans and new ones as well.