The Transformers

The Transformers (later retitled as Transformers) is a comic book line by IDW Publishing based upon Hasbro's Transformers characters and toy line, featuring many writers and artists across multiple series. It is notable for being the longest continuously running Transformers continuity to date, beginning in October 2005 with The Transformers: Infiltration and ending in November 2018, after the six-issue Unicron event comic. The following year, it would be rebooted and succeeded by a new comic book series on 2019. IDW lost the license rights by the end of 2022 and the license was passed to Skybound Entertainment in 2023. Publication history First era Dreamwave Productions shut down on January 4, 2005, and announced they would cease publication of all their comics, leaving Transformers: Generation One and its prequel series, Transformers: The War Within incomplete. Chris Ryall, editor-in-chief of IDW Publishing, leaped at the chance to bid on the property. On May 19, 2005, Hasbro announced they had awarded the licensing rights to IDW Publishing, with plans for an issue #0 in October 2005 and an ongoing title entitled The Transformers: Infiltration to begin in January 2006. Beforehand, Ryall met up with long-time writer Simon Furman. Furman aimed for a contemporary version of the Generation 1 incarnation to appeal to new and old fans alike. They both cited a focus on the "Robots in Disguise" element of the characters, aiming to bring back their "myth and majesty". Overall, Furman described it as, "This was, at last (after 20-plus years) MY take on Transformers." Furman also aimed for a real time approach, using maps to help guide his stories. Infiltrations issue #0 sold 100,000 copies in pre-orders, a record for the company. Furman focused the story on Autobot medic Ratchet and broke new ground for G1-based storylines by excluding the Ark crash storyline and having them only just recently arrived deliberately, to give proper intent to the Transformers being on Earth, thus separating the fictional universe from the Beast Wars one. E. J. Su was hired as the artist, and was given free rein to re-design characters slightly.