The Transformers: Infiltration
The Transformers: Infiltration is the first in a line of miniseries by IDW Publishing set in a re-booted Generation 1 continuity. The series brings the presence on Earth of the Autobots and Decepticons into the present day and places the "robots in disguise" concept firmly in the forefront of its narrative.
| Infiltration issues: |
|---|
| #0 | #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 | #6 |
Overview
 Spoiler warning: Plot details follow. of the next episode/issue in the series or 30 days after release, whichever is sooner |
The most immediate shift from original continuity is the nature of the Transformers' presence on Earth. No ancient starship crash, no robots awakening from a four million-year slumber; the Autobots and Decepticons have arrived on Earth fairly recently and on purpose, operating undercover for at least four years. The story is told through the eyes of four main characters: Verity Carlo, a young drifter; Hunter O'Nion, a conspiracy theorist; Jimmy Pink, mechanic and Verity's net-friend; and Ratchet, a medic who puts his conscience over his mission.
The series quickly and consistently establishes a strong Cold War, cloak-and-dagger theme, where secrecy and rules of espionage are as important as, or perhaps even more than, vanquishing the enemy. Thundercracker and the Battlechargers attack the humans and Ratchet to retrieve data on a palmtop PC that might reveal their existence; Ratchet is arrested by Prowl for breaking cover to rescue the humans; both Autobot and Decepticon operations are small cells instead of full-fledged armies. We also discover that there is a third faction at work: a secret human organization known only as the Machination which appears to be aware of the Transformers' presence on Earth and has its own plans, as yet unknown, for the robots. Finally, it becomes evident to the Autobots that the Decepticon operation is up to something unusual, and their new human allies may have a part in unraveling the mystery.
The series has taken an interesting and rather unique approach to the standard Transformers story: introducing only a few new characters with each issue. This enables each issue to focus on a small selection of leads (Ratchet, the humans and later Bumblebee) without overwhelming them and gives each issue space to explore their characters.
Creative team
Infiltration was scripted by long-time Transformer writer Simon Furman and penciled by E. J. Su. The two also worked together on the follow-up miniseries: The Transformers: Escalation.
Collections
- Infiltration TPB (Sep, 2006) ISBN 978-1600100109
- Bonus material includes sketch art by E. J. Su.
- Infiltration Manga (Nov, 2006) ISBN 978-1600100192
