I don't mind Furmanesque dialogue in itself - it suits the rough 'n' tumble Marvel material beautifully. It just jars when set to pseudo-realism, like Brasnya (old-style Marvel having, say, Wakanda isn't a big problem because it's constant with a universe where people hide their identities with domino masks and take Namor seriously).
I just don't see why it had to be a choice between mapping out a new universe and having a really good story. Most of the greatest comics have managed to establish their own backgrounds while also being really, really good fun to read (I can think of very few solid-gold classic titles that were either set fully in an existing universe, or were set in an existing universe and didn't disregard the thing apart from when it suited them).
IDW G1 has been very worthy - in general, the theories and layout can't be faulted, neither can much of the characterisation (sure, you could write IDW-centric bios on half of Prowl's team on the back of a stamp [
Sunstreaker was chippy. Then he became a Headmaster. Jazz is white with black bits and turns into a car. This is also true of Wheeljack], but not everyone's going to get their, ahem, spotlight - Miracleman had Huey Moon, The Authority had Swift and so on), but the actual issue-by-issue storytelling has ranged from average (the latter half of Escalation hit about the right sort of pace, IMO - not just the fight scenes [though they were a welcome novelty], but the right rate of things unfolding and being introduced. Devastation went tits-up in the second half because the layout was screwed, the action was half-hearted and hobbled by Furman being unable to write out a single semi-central character and by War & Peace-itis) to very, very poor.
Part of the problem is that Furman seems to feel obliged to reset the speedometer to zero with every #1 - I guess this is some sort of concession to new readers, but I'm failing to see how - it's going to make them think the comic's dull (which isn't an unfair assumption...), and the plotlines are already growing so labyrinthine you'd have to wonder how many new readers would know or care what's going on anyway.
We should count ourselves lucky, TBH. I get the distinct feeling both Escalation and Devastation were de-Jubilee'd to a large extent, and probably sped up a little. Mind, Escalation still contained the most emo line of dialogue ever, and even if everything else was perfect it'd deserve contempt for that alone...
I think the main reason for AHM happening is to get a comic out there to get some jump-on readers, TBH. The central concept is incredibly simple ("Decepticons rool teh Earth - h@rdc0r3! TO THE X-TREME"), and no doubt there'll be lavish adverts within for the fine collection of IDW graphic novels.
![[The Transformers Archive - an international fan site]](/common/skin/cardbackwide/tfarchive.png)
