Tumbleweed vs. The Magic of Cybertron #3 · 7:31pm Jul 2nd, 2021
I've been procrastinating writing this post, and I'm not quite sure why.
Still! I've got a thing going, and as FiMfiction's self-proclaimed ROBOT EXPERT, as well as being BEST AT PONIES (also self proclaimed), I figure I have, like ... responsibilities and stuff! Even if it's sometimes hard to weigh in. As, y'see, I've also been catching up on the last few Blacksad volumes, and damn if they aren't stupidly good. Gorgeously painted furry noir. It's like Usagi Yojimbo meets Raymond Chandler. I just eat this stuff up. Seriously, look at this art.
Bonus points if you spotted the literary reference.
And while I'd love goob about this comic some more (and note how tragic it is that the weasel reporter sidekick guy didn't get that cute gal's phone number in New Orleans), I guess I should talk about pony, huh?
Anyway, Issue #3 is ... more of the same. Two little standalone stories, in which some ponies meet some robots and get into hijinks. You get the idea.
The first one is ... honestly kind of weak. As per that cover, it's Octavia and Vinyl Scratch (and the Student Six for some reason?) meeting Soundwave. They get stuck in a hole or something, and everybody teams up to get out. That's it. I think the biggest problem here is the fact that Soundwave and Vinyl Scratch are kinda similar. There's the sound thing, yeah-- and they both have cool looks. But at the same time, Soundwave is really tied to his synthesized robot-voice, and Vinyl Scratch (per the cartoon) is mute ... both of which are really hard to convey in comic form. Vinyl in particular is pretty hard, as in a static comic panel, you can't put in the little nods or facial expressions or other physical business you could do in animation to get your point across.
This is why, on the rare times I DO write Vinyl Scratch, I let her talk.
The second story is a lot better, though. It pairs up Rarity and Ratchet-- possibly the first combo of robot + pony in this miniseries that's based on how DIFFERENT they are, as opposed to how vaguely similar. Ratchet's a grumpy medic who gets shit done, while Rarity is ... Rarity. Oh, and along the way they pick up Knock Out, a character initially from Transformers: Prime, 'cause canon means nothing at this point. Knock-Out is fairly popular in certain corners of the TF fandom, it's worth noting, as he's kind of vain and sadistic-- but he's also got a gay car robot thing going with Breakdown. The non-Stunticon breakdown, for the record. The comic leans into this, with Knock-Out calling Breakdown his 'Partner' and curing him from his magic brainwashing with an impassioned plea with FEELINGS and stuff. Like, there's no gay robot kissing, but it's ... close. But hey, June's Pride month? And they already had Arcee and Greenlight be robo-lesbians in the first issue, and ... yeah.
Honestly, my only complaint about this segment is that there are a bunch of generic robots in the background-- that could've been drawn as, well, literally any of the hundreds of rando robots the TF canon has to offer. Gimmie my goofy weirdo cameos, dangit!
Still! Next month's issue concludes the series, which ... well, it probably won't be as epic and over the top as it could, as the first three issues have mostly been just episodic vignettes, just sort of faffing around instead of building up to a grand finale, but that may be just me overthinking a silly comic book.
But hey, overthinking silly kid's entertainment is why we're HERE, right?
Blacksad is mega-awesome!
Not even sure how robots can be gay...? Or gendered for that matter.
After-market specialty parts, maybe? I'd love to browse through that Auto Zone! 
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So, funny that you mention that. As, well, female robots have been part of Transformers canon since like 1985. Of course, they didn't bother EXPLAINING why there were girly pink robots back then, but that almost worked better. I recall one of my favorite fan-explanations was that, when the Quintessons built Cybertonians as a marketable slave-race, they built some of them with sleeker, more 'feminine' forms so various servant-models were more aesthetically pleasing, or whatever.
Fast forward a couple of decades, and writers at IDW comics have started to play around with a lot of ideas regarding gender as a social construct-- and, given that change is inherently part of who the Transformers are, (it's right in the name!) it makes sense that some of them would change themselves into forms that they were more comfortable in. While on the flipside, in a race of sentient, emotional creatures that are predominantly mono-gendered/coded-male, it makes sense that 'gay' relationships would arise. So, y'know, storytelling potential!
We just kind of ignore what Simon Furman did for Arcee's backstory, 'cause ooof.
And yes I know you were just making a stupid gag but rambling about this sorta thing is why I'm (almost) BEST AT ROBOTS. :)
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If you want more detail than Tumbleweed just gave I suggest watching this video. If you find that one interesting then I suggest watching this one next as a logical follow-up. It's a really good fan channel and most of the videos are only 10-15 minutes long.
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Huh. I am so Transformers-unaware that I didn't know they were an American thing. I thought the originals must have been a dubbed Japanese series. Or... were they? It's not exactly clear from the video.
OMFG! 3D animation sucked back then!
"Pronounceably human proportions" is a great way to say "enormous boobs!"
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If you are seriously curious about where Transformers came from McFeely has that covered too. Though it's a longer video than most.
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Again, huh. Now I know more about Transformers that I ever thought I would.
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The toys were a couple Japanese lines of toys. The concept itself was created by Marvel Comics at the behest of Hasbro, with the mandate to give the damn toys a storyline :P