TRANSFORMERS #37 (SKYBOUND ENTERTAINMENT/IMAGE COMICS)

We find ourselves back on Cybertron as Elita Prime tries to rally the Autobots to finally take out the Decepticons. However, as the battles go on and Elita pushes herself harder and harder, can she keep up the pace, or will she crumble under the pressure? Meanwhile, Shockwave is up to something, and no one can find him.

Transformers #37 - Written By Robert Kirkman - Art By Karl Kerschl - Colors By Mike Spicer – Letters By Rus Wooten - Edited By Ben Abernathy - Published By Skybound Entertainment/Image Comics

Credit: Skybound Entertainment/Image Comics

*** POSSIBLE SPOILER WARNING ***

WRITING:

This issue returns the story to Cybertron, where Elita Prime is leading the Autobot assault against the Decepticons in a desperate effort to reclaim their home planet. Robert Kirkman immediately establishes that the stakes extend beyond winning individual battles: the Autobots are fighting for their future, their identity, and the chance to rebuild a world that has been consumed by war. That larger goal gives Elita’s decisions additional weight, because every victory appears to demand more from her personally. Kirkman repeatedly shows that she is stretching herself too thin, refusing to slow down even as the pressure of command continues to build. When she is asked to aid Optimus and the Autobots on Earth so they can defeat Megatron and return to Cybertron as reinforcements, she rejects the request again and again. The story does not reduce that refusal to a single explanation. Elita may be acting out of pride, stubbornness, exhaustion, or a belief that Cybertron cannot afford to lose her attention for even a moment. By leaving her motivation open to interpretation, Kirkman makes her choices feel more complicated and human rather than simply right or wrong. Her determination inspires the Autobots and keeps their campaign moving forward, but it also raises concerns about whether she can continue carrying the burden alone. As the Autobots gain ground and push deeper into Decepticon territory, the issue invites the reader to question not only whether they can win, but what that victory may cost Elita and everyone following her.

At the same time that Elita Prime and the Autobots are battling for Cybertron and, in many ways, struggling against their own limits, Shockwave is quietly pursuing a plan of his own. The issue opens with him torturing Alpha Trion, immediately establishing a darker parallel to the Autobots’ open campaign. While Elita’s forces are fighting across the planet in full view, Shockwave is working in isolation, using calculation and brutality to obtain the information he needs. Kirkman wisely avoids revealing the full scope of his plan, but he provides one crucial detail: Shockwave wants the location of Vector Sigma. That objective gives his actions a clear sense of direction while preserving the mystery surrounding what he intends to do once he finds it. The lack of a complete explanation makes the threat more effective, because the reader understands that Shockwave is moving toward something important even though the Autobots remain unaware of the danger. Since returning, he has already proven to be an enemy they cannot easily predict or contain. His intelligence, patience, and willingness to exploit others make him dangerous in a way that differs from the more direct violence of the ongoing war. By connecting him to Vector Sigma and keeping him largely outside the main conflict, Kirkman suggests that Shockwave could disrupt the struggle for Cybertron in ways neither side is prepared to confront. The result is a strong secondary plot that builds suspense and makes it clear that Shockwave is on the verge of becoming an even greater problem than he has been already.

ARTWORK:

The artwork in this issue captures both the scale of the battle for Cybertron and the personal strain the conflict places on its characters. Karl Kerschl fills the combat sequences with movement, impact, and mechanical detail, making the clashes between the Autobots and Decepticons feel chaotic without becoming difficult to follow. His layouts guide the reader cleanly through crowded battlefields, while the varied poses and visible damage on the characters give each exchange a convincing sense of force. Kerschl’s strongest work, however, may be the way he depicts Elita Prime’s physical and emotional deterioration. Her increasingly damaged armor, exhausted posture, and worn appearance become a visual record of how far she is pushing herself. Rather than relying only on dialogue to explain her condition, the artwork allows the reader to see the consequences of her leadership choices from scene to scene. As the issue progresses, Elita appears more battered and fatigued, reinforcing the concern that her determination may be driving her beyond her limits. Kerschl also gives Shockwave’s scenes a distinct and unsettling atmosphere. The torture of Alpha Trion is presented with a harsh sense of control and brutality that matches Shockwave’s cold, methodical nature. These quieter, more disturbing moments contrast effectively with the open warfare elsewhere in the issue, demonstrating Kerschl’s ability to handle both large scale action and character focused tension.

Mike Spicer’s colors add depth, atmosphere, and clarity to Kerschl’s artwork while strengthening the intensity of the conflict. His color choices help define the metallic surfaces, scratches, dents, and other small details in the linework, making the accumulated damage to the characters easier to notice. This is especially important in Elita Prime’s scenes, where subtle shifts in shading and visible wear support the story’s portrayal of her exhaustion. During the battle sequences, the bright energy of blaster fire cuts sharply through the darker environments of Cybertron, creating a vivid contrast that emphasizes how relentless and destructive the fighting has become. The different bursts of light also help separate characters and actions within crowded panels, allowing the warfare to feel overwhelming without sacrificing readability. Rus Wooton’s lettering provides another important layer to the presentation. The dialogue balloons remain clean, concise, and easy to follow, even when several characters are speaking during fast-moving scenes. More noticeably, the sound effects are designed to complement the size, direction, and force of the action around them. They feel integrated into the compositions rather than placed over the artwork as an afterthought. Their shapes and scale give the battles additional energy, yet they never overpower the characters or obscure the visual storytelling. Together, Kerschl, Spicer, and Wooton create a cohesive presentation in which linework, color, and lettering reinforce one another. The art team continues to be one of the series’ greatest strengths, delivering spectacle, emotional detail, and clear storytelling with remarkable consistency from issue to issue.

Check out MY review of transformers #36

Final Thoughts:

Transformers #37 delivers a tense, visually striking return to Cybertron that balances Elita Prime’s increasingly costly leadership with the looming threat of Shockwave’s secret plan. Strong character work, gripping suspense, and dynamic artwork make this another excellent issue in the series.

FINAL GRADE: 9/10

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