Transform And Roll Out - New G1 Guidebook!

[ryanf]

I've written a book! Foreword by Gregg Berger! Cover by Mike Collins! Pre-order link HERE

Transform And Roll Out is a complete guide to the classic G1 era of The Transformers in America and Europe, chronicling the toys, the comics and the cartoon series that started it all.

Every comic and cartoon episode is analysed, reviewed and put through the wringer, with extensive notes on the continuity, the creators and the lore of the G1 Transformers era.

What's the origin of the Constructicons? Is Buster perpetually 17 years old? How difficult is it to move a planet? Who was Prime's predecessor? All these questions are explored, and more.

Includes - for the first time ever - sales data for the UK Transformers comic, and details of UK Transformers cartoon airdates.

Also includes a look at the books, annuals, 3D comics and other fiction that was released during the era.

If you ever wanted a complete synopsis of "Matt and the Cat", or a list of all edits made to the US comic for its UK publication, or even just a chuckle at Galvatron's insanest quotes, this book is for you!

From Telos Publishing, the company that brought you the acclaimed Thundercats guidebook, Hear The Roar

If anyone has any questions about the book, feel free to comment in this thread!

[drmick]

Any chance you could show a list of contents?

[Andy Turnbull]

Been waiting on this for a while Ryan. Glad to see Telos finally pulled their fingers out.

Andy

[The Doctor]

I had been wondering when this would surface! I shall give it a punt.

-Ralph

[Grand Moff Muffin]

Wow, it says 820pp! Must contain a bit of info with a page count like that.

Martin

[ryanf]

Cheers for the enthusiasm and kind words - it's heartening to hear. I just hope the finished product meets expectations.

Table of contents is as follows (warning: long list)

INTRODUCTION
Notes

PART ONE: THE TOYS

Origins
The 1984 Toy Range
The 1985 Toy Range
The 1986 Toy Range
The 1987 Toy Range
The 1988 Toy Range
The 1989 Toy Range
The 1990 Toy Range
European Transformers, 1990-1993
Classics
Japanese Transformers
European Exclusives
The 1993 Transition Year

PART TWO: THE COMICS

Creation And Launch
[1] The Transformers
Wherefore Ark Thou?
[2] Power Play!
The Back-Up Strips, Part 1: Machine Man
[3] Prisoner Of War!
Why Were There So Few Crossovers?
The Back-Up Strips, Part 2: Matt And The Cat
[4] The Last Stand
A Four-Issue Limited Series
Marvel UK: A Background
[4.1] Man Of Iron
The Early Uk Stories: Continuity Nightmares?
The Back-Up Strips, Part 3: The Chromobots
[4.2] The Enemy Within!
Openers
Robot Round-Up
[4.3] Raiders Of The Last Ark
The Back-Up Strips, Part 4: From The Fact Files
The Back-Up Strips, Part 5: Robo-Capers
Half-Measures
[5] The New Order
The Back-Up Strips, Part 6: Planet Terry
[6] The Worse Of Two Evils!
[7] Warrior School!
What Do The Credits Actually Mean?
[8] Repeat Performance!
US Straplines, Part 1
[8.1] Decepticon Dam-Busters!
Interface
The ‘Next’ Box, Part 1
[8.2] The Wrath Of Grimlock!
UK Straplines, Part 1
[9] Dis-Integrated Circuits!
[10] The Next Best Thing To Being There!
What’s The Origin Of The Constructicons?
[11] Brainstorm!
The Transformers Calendars
[12] Prime Time!
Uncovered
[12.1] Christmas Breaker!
Eighteen Months In Portland – A Timeline
[12.2] Crisis Of Command!
Transformation
[12.3] The Icarus Theory
Read All About It
[12.4] Dinobot Hunt!
The Back-Up Strips, Part 7: Iron Man
[13] Shooting Star!
The Back-Up Strips, Part 8: Robotix
[14] Rock And Roll-Out!
[15] I, Robot-Master!
1985 In Comics: The First Full Year
[16] Plight Of The Bumblebee!
The Back-Up Strips, Part 9: Rocket Raccoon
[16.1] Robot Buster!
Base Jumping
[16.2] Devastation Derby!
Competition Time!
[16.3] Second Generation!
Stop The World, I Want To Get Off
[17] Return To Cybertron Part 1: The Smelting Pool!
US Advertisements, Part 1: Food And Drink
[18] The Bridge To Nowhere!
[19] Command Performances!
Dead Or Alive?
[20] Showdown!
[20.1] In The National Interest
The Back-Up Strips, Part 10: Hercules, Prince Of Power
[20.2] Target: 2006
You Got The Torch! What’s The Matrix Flame?
You Got The Notion! What’s Galvatron’s Plan?
[21] Aerialbots Over America!
[22] Heavy Traffic!
Marvel Team-Up
[22.1] The Gift
How Old Is Buster?
[23] Decepticon Grafitti!
The Back-Up Strips, Part 11: Spitfire And The Troubleshooters
[23.1] Prey!
Split Decision
[23.2] Under Fire!
The Back-Up Strips, Part 12: Action Force/G.I. Joe
[23.3] Distant Thunder!
UK Straplines, Part 2
[23.4] Fallen Angel
The Back-Up Strips, Part 13: The Inhumanoids
[23.5] Resurrection!
Counter-Plot
[24] Afterdeath!
Why Does Optimus Prime Die?
[25] Gone But Not Forgotten!
[26] Funeral For A Friend!
US Advertisements, Part 2: Film, Television And Video Games (A-G)
[27] King Of The Hill!
[27.1] Wanted: Galvatron – Dead Or Alive!
How Does Time Travel Work?
[27.2] Burning Sky!
How Did The Movie Affect The Comics?
[27.3] Hunters
No Joe!
[27.4] Fire On High!
Death’s Head – A History
[28] Mechanical Difficulties!
Next Issue, Part 1
[29] Crater Critters
Fighting For Freedom: An Introduction To GI Joe And Action Force
[29.1] Ancient Relics!
[30] The Cure!
Water Works
[31] Buster Witwicky And The Car Wash Of Doom
US Advertisements, Part 3: Film, Television And Video Games (H-Z)
[31.1] Worlds Apart!
The ‘Next’ Box, Part 2
[31.2] Kup’s Story!
The Back-Up Strips, Part 14: Spider-Man
[31.3] Headhunt
UK Advertisements, Part 1: Food And Drink
[31.4] Grudge Match!
[31.5] Ladies’ Night
[32] Used Autobots
Transformers US: The Ident Box
[33] And [34] Man Of Iron (Re-Print)
[35] Child’s Play (Comic)
US Straplines, Part 2
[36] Spacehikers!
[36.1] Stargazing
Rise And Shine
[36.2] The Legacy Of Unicron!
Gods Of Metal: The Origin Of The Transformers
Magic ’Trix
[36.3] Enemy Action!
Great News, Pals!
The Back-Up Strips, Part 15: Combat Colin
[37] Toy Soldiers!
[38] Trial By Fire!
Oh, Brother
Pothole Or Plot Hole?
[39] The Desert Island Of Space!
The Back-Up Strips, Part 16: Visionaries
[39.1] Salvage!
[40] Pretender To The Throne!
US Advertisements, Part 4: Books And Comics (A-H)
[40.1] City Of Fear!
[40.2] Legion Of The Lost!
World In Motion
[40.3] Meltdown!
The Story So Far …
[40.4] Deadly Games!
UK Straplines, Part 3
[40.5] Wrecking Havoc!
The UK Letters Page
[41] Totaled!
[42] People Power!
Charged With Battery
[43] The Big Broadcast Of 2006 (Comic)
[44] The Cosmic Carnival
US Advertisements, Part 5: Books And Comics (I-Z)
[44.1] Space Pirates!
Transforming Transformers
Frailty, Thy Name Is …
[44.2] Firebug!
Wrecked Continuity
The ‘Next’ Box, Part 3
[44.3] Dry Run!
Time Slip?
[45] Monstercon From Mars!
Transmissions
[46] Ca$h And Car-Nage!
[47] Club Con! (The Underbase Saga! Part One)
Short Stories
[48] The Flames Of Boltax! (The Underbase Saga! Part Two)
Next Issue, Part 2
[48.1] Cold Comfort And Joy!
[48.2] Time Wars
Remembering The First Time
Grimlock’s New Brain
[49] Cold War! (The Underbase Saga! Part Three)
[50] Dark Star (The Underbase Saga! Part Four: The Electriying Conclusion)
US Advertisements, Part 6: Toys And Games
[51] The Man In The Machine!
[52] Guess Who The Mecannibals Are Having For Dinner?
Triple Changes
[52.1] The Fall And Rise Of The Decepticon Empire
UK Advertisements, Part 2: Transformers Toys
[52.2] Race With The Devil
Imperfect Timing
[53] Recipe For Disaster!
[53.1] Survivors!
Repeat To Fade
[53.2] Aspects Of Evil!
Time After Time
Aspects Of Earthforce?
[53.3] [Double] Deal Of The Century!
A Nebulous Concept
[53.4] The Hunting Party
Black And White And Read All Over
[53.5] The Big Shutdown!
Thunderwing’s Story
[54] King Con!
[54.1] A Small War!
UK Advertisements, Part 3: Other Transformers Merchandise
[54.2] Prime’s Rib!
The ‘Next’ Box, Part 4
[54.3] Deathbringer
[55] The Interplanetary Wrestling Championship!
US Advertisements, Part 7: Miscellaneous (A-L)
[55.1] Way Of The Warrior
[56] Back From The Dead
Ret-’Con
[56.1] Out To Lunch!
What’s With All These Drill Tanks?
[56.2] Rage!
[57] The Resurrection Gambit!
Faking It?
[57.1] Two Megatrons!
What Was Straxus’ Plan?
[57.2] Demons!
[58] All The Familiar Faces!
[58.1] Fallen Star!
[59] Skin Deep
Order Of Play
[59.1] Whose Lifeforce Is It Anyway?
[59.2] The Greatest Gift Of All
[59.3] Shadow Of Evil
UK Straplines, Part 4
[60] Yesterday’s Heroes!
US Advertisements, Part 7: Miscellaneous (M-Z)
[60.1] … Perchance To Dream
[61] The Primal Scream
[61.1] Starting Over!
The Earthforce Saga: A Continuity Conundrum
[62] Bird Of Prey! (Matrix Quest Part One Of Five)
[62.1] Snow Fun!
UK Advertisements, Part 4: Film, Television And Video Games
[62.2] Flashback!
[62.3] Mystery!
UK Straplines, Part 5
[62.4] The Bad Guy’s Ball!
UK Advertisements, Part 5: Books And Comics
[62.5] The Living Nightlights!
[62.6] Wolf In The Fold!
The Transformers UK: The Ident Box
[62.7] Internal Affairs!
[62.8] The House That Wheeljack Built!
UK Advertisements, Part 6: Toys And Games
[62.9] Divide And Conquer! (Comic)
[62.10] The 4,000,000 Year Itch!
Free Gifts
[62.11] Makin’ Tracks!
[63] Kings Of The Wild Frontier. (Matrix Quest Part Two Of Five)
US Straplines, Part 3
[63.1] Shut Up!
[63.2] Manoeuvres!
The ‘Next’ Box, Part 5
[63.3] Assassins
UK Advertisements, Part 7: Miscellaneous
[64] Deadly Obsession (Matrix Quest Part Three Of Five)
[64.1] Inside Story!
Reformatted!
[65] Dark Creation (Matrix Quest Part Four Of Five)
Prime’s Predecessor
[66] All Fall Down (Matrix Quest Part Five Of Five) (TF)
[67] Rhythms Of Darkness!
Three Galvatrons!
[68] The Human Factor!
‘Dreadwind’s Xmas!’
[69] Eye Of The Storm
[70] The Pri₵e Of Life!
[71] Surrender!
Blackpool Illuminati
[72] … All This And Civil War 2
[73] Out Of Time!
Bullpen Bulletins
[74] The Void!
Next Issue, Part 3
[75] On The Edge Of Extinction!
[76] Still Life!
American Comic Sales Data
[77] Exodus!
[78] A Savage Circle
The Intro Text
[79] The Last Autobot?
[80] End Of The Road!
RIP Transformers

The Transformers: The Movie (Comic Adaptation)
[Mov1] The Planet-Eater!
[Mov2] Judgment Day!
[Mov3] The Final Battle!

The Transformers Universe
[Uni1] The Transformers Universe #1
[Uni2] The Transformers Universe #2
[Uni3] The Transformers Universe #3
[Uni4] The Transformers Universe #4
The Transformers A To Z

G.I. Joe And The Transformers
[Gij1] Blood On The Tracks
[Gij2] Power Struggle
[Gij3] Ashes, Ashes …
[Gij4] … All Fall Down! (Gij)

The Transformers: Headmasters
[Hdm1] Ring Of Hate!
[Hdm2] Broken Glass!
[Hdm3] Love And Steel!
[Hdm4] Brothers In Armor!!

The UK Annuals
[A1.1] Plague Of The Insecticons!
Pest Control
Continuity Cat Flap
[A1.2] Missing In Action
Setting The Action
[A1.3] Tales Of Cybertron: And There Shall Come… A Leader!
[A1.4] Hunted!
Hunting For Explanations
[A2.1] In The Beginning … (The Story Of The Transformers … So Far.)
The Annual Datafiles
Robot War! From Cybertron To Earth – The Story So Far!
Robot War II The Saga Of The Transformers
Robot War III
[A2.2] To A Power Unknown!
[A2.3] The Return Of The Transformers
Double Time
[A2.4] A Tale From Cybertron: State Games
Let There Be Light!
More Than Meets The Ides
[A2.5] ‘Victory!’
[A2.6] The Mission
[A3.1] What’s In A Name?
[A3.2] Headmasters Saga
[A3.3] Vicious Circle!
[A3.4] Ark Duty
[A4.1] The Saga Of The Transformers – So Far!
[A4.2] Altered Image!
[A4.3] Prime Bomb!
[A4.4] All In The Minds!
[A4.5] Peace
Is This Just Fantasy?
[A5.1] The Quest!
[A5.2] Destiny Of The Dinobots!
[A5.3] Trigger-Happy!
[A5.4] Dreadwing Down!
[A5.5] The Chain Gang!
[A6.1] The Magnificent Six!
[A7.1] Another Time & Place

The Transformers In 3-D
[3d1] The Test
[3d2] Prism Of Power
[3d3] The War Against The Destructons (Chapter 1 Of 3)
The Missing Episodes

Woman’s Day
[Wd1] The Night The Transformers Saved Christmas

The Books
Ladybird Books
Ballantine Books
Marvel Books
Corgi Books

PART THREE: THE CARTOON SERIES

Introduction
{1-01} More Than Meets The Eye, Part One
Spotlight: The First Episode
{1-02} More Than Meets The Eye, Part Two
Spotlight: Episode Ii – Attack Of The Clones
{1-03} More Than Meets The Eye, Part Three
Spotlight: The End …?
Credits: Three-Part Pilot Episode
{1-04} Transport To Oblivion
{1-05} Roll For It
{1-06} Divide And Conquer (Cartoon Episode)
Spotlight: Transmission Dates
{1-07} Fire In The Sky
{1-08} S.O.S. Dinobots
{1-09} Fire On The Mountain
Spotlight: The 1984 Christmas Toys
{1-10} War Of The Dinobots
{1-11} The Ultimate Doom, Part One
{1-12} The Ultimate Doom, Part Two
Spotlight: The End Credits
{1-13} The Ultimate Doom, Part Three
{1-14} Countdown To Extinction
{1-15} A Plague Of Insecticons
Spotlight: New Characters
{1-16} Heavy Metal War
Credits: Season One
The Television Series: Season Two
{2-01} Autobot Spike
Spotlight: Alternative Versions
{2-02} Changing Gears
{2-03} City Of Steel
{2-04} Attack Of The Autobots
Spotlight: Megatron’s Master Plan?
{2-05} Traitor
{2-06} The Immobilizer
{2-07} The Autobot Run
Spotlight: Akom
{2-08} Atlantis, Arise!
{2-09} Day Of The Machines
Spotlight: Skyfire
{2-10} Enter The Nightbird
{2-11} A Prime Problem
{2-12} The Core
Spotlight: Megatron And Starscream
{2-13} The Insecticon Syndrome
{2-14} Dinobot Island, Part One
{2-15} Dinobot Island, Part Two
Spotlight: Out Of Order
{2-16} The Master Builders
{2-17} Auto Berserk
{2-18} Microbots
Spotlight: Production Problems
{2-19} Megatron’s Master Plan, Part One
{2-20} Megatron’s Master Plan, Part Two
{2-21} Desertion Of The Dinobots, Part One
Spotlight: Fists Of Fun
{2-22} Desertion Of The Dinobots, Part Two
{2-23} Blaster Blues
{2-24} A Decepticon Raider In King Arthur’s Court
Spotlight: Alternative Transformers
{2-25} The Golden Lagoon
{2-26} The God Gambit
{2-27} Make Tracks
Spotlight: Size Matters (Part One)
{2-28} Child’s Play (Cartoon Episode)
{2-29} The Gambler
Spotlight: Megatron, The Intergalactic Criminal Mastermind
{2-30} Quest For Survival
{2-31} The Secret Of Omega Supreme
Spotlight: What’s The Origin Of The Constructicons? (Redux)
{2-32} Kremzeek!
{2-33} Sea Change
{2-34} Triple Takeover
Spotlight: Trail-Blazing
{2-35} Prime Target
{2-36} Auto-Bop
{2-37} The Search For Alpha Trion
Spotlight: Female Transformers
{2-38} The Girl Who Loved Powerglide
{2-39} Hoist Goes Hollywood
{2-40} The Key To Vector Sigma, Part One
Spotlight: Combiners
{2-41} The Key To Vector Sigma, Part Two
{2-42} War Dawn
Spotlight: Repeat Performance
{2-43} Trans-Europe Express
{2-44} Cosmic Rust
{2-45} Starscream’s Brigade
Spotlight: Size Matters (Part Two)
{2-46} The Revenge Of Bruticus
{2-47} Aerial Assault
{2-48} Masquerade
Spotlight: Toei
{2-49} B.O.T.
Credits: Season Two
{3-00} The Transformers: The Movie
Credits: The Transformers: The Movie (Selected)
The Television Series: Season Three
{3-01} Five Faces Of Darkness, Part One
Spotlight: Carbombya
{3-02} Five Faces Of Darkness, Part Two
{3-03} Five Faces Of Darkness, Part Three
{3-04} Five Faces Of Darkness, Part Four
Spotlight: Prepare To Meet Your Maker
{3-05} Five Faces Of Darkness, Part Five
{3-06} The Killing Jar
{3-07} Chaos
Spotlight: Transformers That Never Were
{3-08} Dark Awakening
{3-09} Forever Is A Long Time Coming
{3-10} Fight Or Flee
Spotlight: ‘He’s Still Using My Name’
{3-11} Thief In The Night
{3-12} Starscream’s Ghost
{3-13} Surprise Party
Spotlight: Breaking The Mould
{3-14} Madman’s Paradise
{3-15} Nightmare Planet
{3-16} Ghost In The Machine
Spotlight: Why Were the Transformers Such A Success?
{3-17} Webworld
{3-18} Carnage In C-Minor
{3-19} The Big Broadcast Of 2006 (Cartoon Episode)
Spotlight: Junk Culture
{3-20} The Quintesson Journal
{3-21} The Ultimate Weapon
{3-22} The Dweller In The Depths
Spotlight: Joe In The Show
{3-23} Only Human
{3-24} Grimlock’s New Brain
{3-25} Money Is Everything
Spotlight: The Transformers On Home Video
{3-26} Call Of The Primitives
{3-27} The Face Of The Nijika
{3-28} The Burden Hardest To Bear
Spotlight: How Does The Cartoon Differ From The Comics?
{3-29} The Return Of Optimus Prime, Part 1
{3-30} The Return Of Optimus Prime, Part 2
Credits: Season Three
The Television Series: Season Four
{4-01} The Rebirth, Part 1
Spotlight: The Transformers In Japan
{4-02} The Rebirth, Part 2
{4-03} The Rebirth, Part 3
Credits: Season Four
Season Five/Generation 2

APPENDICES

Appendix 1: The Transformers In The UK
Appendix 2: Why Did The Transformers Die?
Appendix 3: The Comics – What Happened Next?
Appendix 4: Comic Reprints
Marvel US
Marvel UK
Titan
IDW Publishing
Hachette Livre
Appendix 5: Issue Contents
The Transformers (Marvel US)
The Transformers: The Movie (Marvel US)
The Transformers Universe (Marvel US)
G.I. Joe And The Transformers (Marvel US)
The Transformers: Headmasters (Marvel US)
The Transformers (Marvel UK)
The Transformers Annual (Marvel UK/Grandreams)

[drmick]

Thank you, much appreciated.

I used to love the Prime Targets book, it was one of the first TF reference books, and came out long before the Titan Reprints and DVDs.

Looking forward to this.

[The Doctor]

I'll give this new book a try. The Prime Targets book was good for the time though was long enough ago there's room for another take on that type of guidebook. I'm still amazed there was never an official TF Cartoon guidebook back when that version of the franchise dominated the fanbase.

-Ralph

[ryanf]

That's a good point about Prime Targets (I own that too). Other than that and Stuart Webb's excellent Transformation books, I can't think of any other Transformers non-fiction books that aren't large-format picture books or toy guides.

Which was part of my reason for doing this in the first place - when you look on amazon and see that far shorter-lived franchises such as Lost and Farscape have numerous non-fiction paperbacks written about them, it seems odd that Transformers - with its 34-year history and a thriving fan community - hasn't spawned more works of this ilk. Part of my pitch to Telos was basically me saying that it was a very non-crowded market and that there's very little in the way of competition. I don't know if the all-encompassing nature of the wiki has put people off? Personally I think the more people that lend their own voices, thoughts and insights into the franchise, the better.

The main question I asked myself when writing this was basically, "what would I like to see in my ideal Transformers book?" I'm a bit of a guidebook nut and loved the ones that Virgin Books put out around the turn of the century (like the Doctor Who Discontinuity Guide, The New Trek Programme Guide... I think there were Buffy and X-Files ones as well), so this is in the same sort of vein (but less witty, because I'm not really a funny person!!!).

In fact the main incident that kickstarted this was when I was reading a reprint of 'Man of Iron' a few years ago, and I thought there had been an edit - I could have sworn that the scene in Part 2 where Sammy floats out of his window was explained away as one of Mirage's illusions, but in the reprint it read more like Sammy was just having a bad dream. But I felt sure I'd seen the Mirage explanation somewhere before, and the wiki (at the time, I'm not sure if it has been edited since) was unable to help.

I eventually found the answer in one of the later letters pages (issue 13), where it was confirmed that Mirage was indeed using his powers of illusion during that scene. I thought to myself - wouldn't it be cool to have a book which contained exactly that sort of trivia, and it just snowballed from there, really.

[legios]

Sounds interesting. Your right, it is the sort of thing that TF fandom is surprisingly light on. I might well check this out.

Karl