Nick Roche

Nick Roche (born September 5, 1979 [1]) is an Irish comic book artist and writer for IDW Publishing. He is awesome.
Nick Roche is a native of County Wexford, but currently resides in Dublin, Ireland. Having always been a massive Transformers fan, Roche's produced artwork for fan fiction and UK convention publications, gaining a healthy fanbase within the UK, but remaining almost entirely unknown outside of the tight-knit UK fandom.
He pitched his work to Dreamwave Productions but had no response, something he's glad about in hindsight; he notes "at the time, I'd have worked for free but it turns out everyone else at Dreamwave was doing that anyway".[2] Nick finally got his break into Transformers when IDW Publishing acquired the Transformers license. A friend of Nick's by the name of Dave Hendrick sent IDW supremo Chris Ryall Nick's samples.
Twenty minutes later there was an email back from Chris.
Nick started on the "Chrischarger" art before being given Spotlights, then more Spotlights (and a Devastation fill-in) before being given the Maximum Dinobots mini-series. He's also penciled numerous covers for the different Transformers series, including a piece for the Target 2006 reprints featuring the original team of Wreckers, the covers for the Metrodome DVD sets of Super-God Masterforce and Victory, and a special comic and a piece of artwork packed with Madman Entertainment's Generation 1 DVD set. Nick has also worked on the new Transformers UK comic book (issue 2) and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic for Titan.
If that wasn't enough, Nick drew and wrote Spotlight: Kup, which also has the distinction of being the first issue in the IDW G1 continuity written by someone other than Simon Furman. He co-wrote and drew the incredibly well-received Last Stand of the Wreckers with James Roberts. And he also writes panto![2]
Shattered trousers are usually left in his wake.
Writing
- "Spotlight: Kup"
- All Hail Megatron #15 story 1: "Everything in Its Right Place"
- Last Stand of the Wreckers
Comic book art

IDW Publishing
- "Spotlight: Shockwave"
- "Spotlight: Hot Rod"
- "Spotlight: Kup"
- Beast Wars Sourcebook #1, #2 (select pages)
- Devastation #3
- "Spotlight: Hardhead"
- Maximum Dinobots
- All Hail Megatron #15 story 1: "Everything in Its Right Place"
- Last Stand of the Wreckers
Madman Entertainment
- Transformers Generation 1 Complete Collection DVD set (pack-in comic book and Matrix of Leadership chamber artwork with Don Figueroa and Josh Burcham)
Titan Books
DVD cover art
Convention appearances
- BotCon (2007)
- BotCon (2009)
- Auto Assembly (2009)
- Auto Assembly (2010)
Notes
- Nick Roche's art style is instantly recognizable in a comic due to his semi-stylized lines. According to him, he just "makes the hands bigger and the pointy bits pointier", and he would like to draw with "Senior's energy, Wildman's expressiveness and Yaniger's chins!". He is also noted for being able to change his drawing style. He says he finds he does change it automatically depending on the story, such as upping the cartooniness for "Spotlight Hot Rod" and toning it down for a story from Prowl's point of view.[2]
- He has admitted to being "gay for Hot Rod".
- He is also the first Transformers celebrity to have interviewed another Transformers celebrity.[4]
- At Auto Assembly 2010 it was discovered that Nick can do an uncanny David Kaye impression. Yesssssss.
Gallery
-
Hot Rod enjoys freefalling to a planet in "Spotlight: Hot Rod".
-
Buster Witwicky's never looked this cool before or since. Cover art for Transformers: Generations issue #12.
-
Hardhead's got a hard head in "Spotlight: Hardhead".
References
- ↑ "The Twenty-Nine Club"
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Nick Roche interview with Moonbase Two
- ↑ http://forum.idwpublishing.com/viewtopic.php?p=106763#106763
- ↑ http://c3.libsyn.com/media/20749/EP_26_-_OLDMOON_OILBASE_INTERVIEWS_STAN_BUSH.mp3?nvb=20100909170039&nva=20100910171039&sid=fd4711763d08f49953c5982d42719c75&l_sid=20749&l_eid=&l_mid=2021798&t=0155622406f16c055d36b





