Skybound's Transformers has been a big hit with us ever since it launched last year - heck, we even named it our second favorite comic of 2023. That's in no small part down to its writer and artist, Daniel Warren Johnson, who has brought both emotional resonance and real visual heft to the robots in disguise.
Skybound are changing things up in April, however. Artist Jorge Corona will be stepping in to draw the series' second arc, with colorist Mike Spicer remaining in place. Johnson will continue to write the comic.
"It's a rare breed of artist that can naturally bring an organic quality to things that are inherently mechanical, and Jorge is one of those chosen few," said Johnson in a statement. "Prepare your eyes for a feast of brawn and beauty, my friends. This man draws a mean looking Soundwave. KA BAM!"
Corona, for his part, had this to say about taking on the comic:
"It started with a 'Do you want to work on a book with Daniel Warren Johnson?' and just in case that wasn't a deafening 'YES,' they added: 'It's for the TRANSFORMERS book.' Growing up with TRANSFORMERS and its many iterations expanded in many ways what a cartoon could do for me. Even though it had the classic good vs. evil premise, it also added malleability to what the characters could do in that world. Betrayals, regrets, self-doubts, were all emotions that drove these characters and it added a complexity that I wasn't familiar with in other shows. Fast forward to 30 years later and here I am seeing Daniel's take on the franchise, rooted in his love for the original Generation One version, and it's like reliving those childhood memories multiplied by a thousand. I am very honored and humbled to be a part of this project and cannot wait to share all of the craziness that's coming up in the book."
Although we'll miss Johnson's art on the book for now, for our money, Corona's very individual and stylized work makes him a terrific choice for the series. The artist has drawn comics as diverse as Batgirls and We Are Robin for DC; Middlewest and Goners for Image; and Big Trouble in Little China for BOOM! Studios.
Transformers #4 was published this week by Skybound. Transformers #7, which marks Corona's arrival on the series, will be published on April 10.
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