Transformers - Monstrosity

The second of the Metzen/Dille trilogy, Monstrosity is something of a disappointment after the pleasant diversion of Autocracy. It loosely covers Optimus Prime's attempts to persuade the general population of Cybertron that he's not a tyrant like predecessor Zeta Prime while trying to deal with the insurgent Decepticons. The latter spend a portion of the story under the command of Scorponok while Megatron is in exile.

Overall Monstrosity's big problem is that it's about lots of things and it lacks the tight coherence of its' predecessor. The biggest fault is Megatron's exhile to the planet Junkion, here a nightmarish Hell filled with cannibalistic robots. It's not a bad story idea and the pock-marked cloak-clad Megatron wading in Junkion oil around the planet with his pet Quintesson chained up is actually a great visual. The problem is such an epic idea is dealt with in too short a period of time, especially considering the format forces such rapid pacing.

The final act revolves around the resurrection of Trypticon and the attempts to tame the savage Dynobots so they can integrate into the Autobot army. Really it feels quite tacked on and adds to the feeling of a desperate jumble of ideas. Most of the actual dialogue and action is passable, though old references - predominantly to the '86 movie - grow in number as the series goes on and become quite jarring. Livio Ramondelli continues to provide beautiful art, however, and the story's not bad, merely flawed and rough.

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