Writer: Robert Kirkman
Artist: Dan Mora
Colorist: Sarah Stern
Cover Artist: David Nakayama
Transformers #29 is the kind of issue that reminds you why this rivalry has endured for decades. In the wake of Trailbreaker’s shocking murder, Robert Kirkman strips the book down to its most volatile elements and lets them collide.
There are no detours, no slow-burn subplots jockeying for space. This is war—raw and immediate. At the same time, beneath all the shattered trees and cracked armor, there are fractures forming that may prove just as important as the battle itself. It’s the kind of issue that makes you realize how attached you’ve become to these versions of the characters.
A War With No Restraint
Optimus and Megatron fight to open the issue.
The issue opens exactly where it needs to: Optimus Prime standing over the aftermath of Megatron’s savage kill. If the previous issue was about Megatron losing control, this one is about Optimus reaching his breaking point. He does not arrive to negotiate. He arrives to end it.
What follows is one of the most sustained action sequences of the entire run. Autobots and Decepticons pour into the forest near the Ark, and the fight escalates almost instantly. Laser blasts rip through trees. Massive bodies slam into the earth. Characters who have been circling each other for months finally collide. Kirkman abandons the slower, multi-plot structure of recent issues and commits fully to the battlefield. And it works.
There is something refreshing about an issue that trusts the central conflict enough to let it dominate the page count. This is not a filler spectacle. The fight feels earned. It feels like the inevitable eruption of everything that has been building since Megatron’s return.
Combiner Chaos
Bulkhead takes on the full power of Bruticus.
The scale of the battle becomes even more impressive once the combiners enter the picture. Several Constructicons break off and breach the Ark in an attempt to free Soundwave. They destroy the control panel holding him and combine into an incomplete Devastator, who turns his attention to Ultra Magnus and Arcee.
The image of a partially assembled Devastator is both slightly absurd and a little creepy. Even unfinished, he feels dangerous. It reinforces how high the stakes have become. The Autobots are not just fighting individual soldiers anymore; they’re fighting war machines for the fate of an entire planet. At times, though, the sheer number of players on the board makes it hard to keep track of who is where and doing what.
Elsewhere, the Combaticons form Bruticus and clash with Bulkhead and the other Autobots in a sequence that feels heavy and physical. There is a satisfying brutality to these exchanges. Characters are thrown, crushed, and battered in ways that emphasize just how destructive this war has become.
What keeps the issue from becoming visually or emotionally exhausting is Kirkman’s ability to sprinkle in small character beats. Beachcomber choosing to protect deer in the middle of the chaos is a perfect example. It is a tiny moment, but it reinforces who these characters are and what they are fighting for.
Megatron Unraveling
Megatron has an “episode” as he confronts Thundercracker.
At the center of this arc is the continued deterioration of Megatron. His fight with Optimus is not philosophical. There are no grand declarations about "peace through tyranny." It is raw, personal, and fueled by rage.
One of the strongest moments comes when Megatron corners Thundercracker. The former Decepticon, now aligned with the Autobots, stands face to face with the leader he once followed. There is real tension in that standoff; it feels like a reckoning. Thundercracker’s defection has been one of my favorite developments in the run, so that confrontation hit especially hard.
But before Megatron can deliver the killing blow, he suffers another seizure-like episode. These glitches have been hinted at since his captivity in Cobra-La during the 2024 Cobra Commander miniseries—which is worth reading—and they now directly impact the battlefield. Megatron collapses mid-fight, disoriented and unstable.
It is a fascinating development. For so long, Megatron has been defined by control and certainty. Now he is unpredictable in a different way. Not strategic. Not calculating. Just fractured.
The moment shifts the momentum of the battle immediately. The Decepticons falter without their leader fully present. For the first time, Megatron feels less like an unstoppable force and more like a liability. Soundwave’s loyalty during the retreat is another important note. Even as cracks form, some bonds remain intact. Whether that loyalty will hold is another question entirely—one I’m excited to see explored.
The Weight of Command
Megatron and Optimus trade harsh words and harsher blows.
Optimus is not untouched by this battle. Throughout the fight, there is a noticeable edge to him. He has already vowed to rid Earth of the Decepticons, and here we see what that might truly mean. There are moments where it feels like he is genuinely considering ending Megatron permanently.
That tension adds depth to the spectacle. This is not just about survival; it is about who Optimus is willing to become in order to win. Kirkman continues to explore the darker edges of Prime’s leadership without tipping him fully into something unrecognizable.
Then, just as the Autobots seem poised to press their advantage, Devastator emerges fully formed, creating enough chaos for the Decepticons to escape. It is a smart way to preserve the threat without undercutting the Autobots’ effort.
The issue closes on a sharp turn: Elita-1 arrives from Cybertron, battle-worn and visibly furious. Her presence shifts the focus instantly. The external war pauses, but a different confrontation looms. Given the tension surrounding Optimus’ long absence from Cybertron, this is the beginning of something equally explosive.
Dan Mora Goes Wide
ALL OUT TRANSFORMER FIGHT!!!
Dan Mora’s artwork is tailor-made for an issue like this. He leans into widescreen compositions and dynamic layouts, including an impressive double-page spread that captures nearly the entire battlefield in one sweeping image. It is the kind of page you stop on.
Mora excels at clarity. Even in the middle of massive brawls and blaster fire, the action remains readable. The hits feel heavy. The body slams have weight. The forest setting provides a striking contrast to the metallic violence unfolding within it.
There are moments where the sheer number of characters makes things slightly crowded, particularly with multiple combiners active at once. There were a few panels where I had to slow down and reorient myself, but overall, Mora handles the chaos with confidence. He understands when to go big and when to tighten the frame for a more intimate beat.
Sarah Stern’s colors complement the action beautifully, especially in the glow of blaster fire against the natural greens and browns of the forest. The result is an issue that feels cinematic without losing its emotional grounding.
Final Thoughts and Rating
Transformers #29 is a full-throttle escalation that earns every shattered tree and dented helmet—of which there are many. Robert Kirkman wisely focuses the issue on the core Autobot versus Decepticon conflict, allowing years of rage and resentment to finally explode. At the same time, Megatron’s instability and Optimus’ darker impulses suggest that the real danger may lie within the leaders themselves.
Because the issue is so singularly focused on the battle, characters like Spike and Carly are entirely absent. It makes sense structurally, but it does make the world feel slightly smaller this month.
Dan Mora delivers some of his most dynamic work on the series, proving once again that he can handle both intimate character moments and massive, panoramic destruction. There’s something undeniably satisfying about watching this many robots tear into each other in a forest. This is an issue that embraces the chaos of war while quietly setting the stage for deeper fractures to come. It’s not perfect, but it’s undeniably effective. And with Elita-1’s arrival, it is clear that the next battle may not be as straightforward as Autobots versus Decepticons.
Rating: 8.5/10
I need #30 immediately.