Transformers More than Meets the Eye and Robots in Disguise

I know I've recommended these books before, but I've been re-reading Robots in Disguise (which becomes just Transformers later) and reading for the first time most of More than Meets the Eye (which becomes Transformers: Lost Light) and I have to say.. wow. These books are just so beautifully done.

I've talked before about the right and wrong ways to do politics in a book. These books? They get it right. How do they do it?

Well here's the thing.. both of these books take place after the war between the Autobots and Decepticons is finally over. It's done. Time to move on and build a new world. In Robots in Disguise, we follow the adventures of all the Transformers, Autobots, Decepticons and Non-Aligned Indigenous Life Forms (or NAILs) all trying to make a new life on Cybertron. There is animosity between all 3 groups Autobots and Decepticons obviously still hate each other from the 4 million year war and NAILs feel like the war destroyed their planet and they just want their lives back. Various groups and individuals are trying to navigate this new world and forge a new peace. Also because of the animosity many feel and the war he represents, Optimus Prime (now going his original name, Orion Pax) exiles himself. This leaves Bumblebee in charge and representing the Autobots (and the Autobot government which has temporarily been installed). Metalhawk, a new character, appears as a representative of the NAILs and who really just wants peace and stability ultimately, even though he often argues with Bumblebee and drives Bumblebee mad. Meanwhile, Starscream eventually rises to the top of the Decepticons and sort of represents their faction. Obviously, not everything works smoothly and there is conflict and issues, but the book tries to balance all 3 sides and their issues, not showing any one side as always being right. It's really well done and without much problem (and done without an intended message), you can see many parallels with our current issues we face. Because of this, it can work well and be timeless and leads the reader to draw their own conclusions. And yes, even with the Decepticons being "evil", it's clear that they're not always the bad guys and not everyone of them is truly bad.. they were just fighting for a cause they believed in (and the whole if you stop being a Decepticon or even try to leave, there is a death squad that will brutally murder you, probably helped keep them in line).


More than Meets the Eye, we have Rodimus and a group boarding the Lost Light and searching for the fabled Knights of Cybertron who will help restore the planet. So while Bumblebee and his group are forging the future, Rodimus and his team are looking into the past. Again, there are a few Decepticons in this group, a NAIL, and Autobots and we see that not all the Decepticons are evil and not all the Autobots are good. This title also delves into Cybertron's past imperialism and the repercussions of that, how the civil war of Autobots v. Decepticons hurt the galaxy as a whole, and a bunch of other stuff. We also get a look into the religious aspects of Cybertronian myth and there is some conflict between believers and non-believers. Again, neither side is 100% right or wrong and sometimes both are just as equally bad.

These both teach about politics, religion, and well the human condition (the horrors of war are often a common background drum beat and what it does to good people.. er robots). But they do it without judging, without using thinly veiled political standees, strawmen, or moralizing.. It's well done and by breaking from traditional lines of thinking for American audiences at least, it allows readers to see more. It's refreshing to see especially since there could be an easy hard line of Autobots are this political party and Decepticons are this party, but they don't go there at all. And instead the focus seems to shift to a lot about how the us vs. them mentality is and has been hurting everyone.