Generation 1  Generation 1 / Interviews

Interviewed - Simon Furman

TFormers.com is extremely proud to present an exclusive interview with long time Transformers comic, script, you-name-it writer, Simon Furman. Easily the most prominent and appreciated writer to grace the printed pages of Transformer Fandom for the last 18 years. We talked with Simon about his past, present and upcoming with Transformers. Get the word from the man as we touch on everything from the original G1 comics to the just announced UK only Armada comics he will be working on.

Many thanks to Charl, Jack and Dave for contributing to this interview. Special thanks go out to Jamie Boardman for all his kind support!

TFormers (TF): Please tell us a little about your background. Did you ever have any formal training in writing and how did you get into writing for the Transformers comics?

Simon Furman (SF): I originally trained to be a journalist with IPC Magazines, and part of my job involved liasing with their comics division (which, at the time, featured the likes of 2000 AD, Battle and Roy of the Rovers). That in turn led to job offer on a new IPC comic, Scream. It was there (as well as being assistant editor) that I tried my hand at some freelance script work, on the likes of The Dracula Files and Library of Death (my first ever strip was a werewolf story drawn by Steve Dillon). It wasn't great stuff, but I did have a knack for scripting (and I was fast... always a bonus). It was also while working on Scream that I met Ian Rimmer, who subsequently moved over to Marvel UK to edit Captain Britain Monthly. When Transformers (then only a few issues old) editor Sheila Cranna started looking around for people to write UK originated strip for the comic, Ian put my name in the frame.

TF: What do you consider the best issue of a Transformers comic you've written?

SF: It's hard to peg a single issue and say 'that one'. With Transformers, I tend to think in story arcs. Of the US work, issues #69-75 stand out for me, and #11-12 of Gen 2. Of the UK stuff, 'Target: 2006 is still the one I look back on with most fondness, though I did enjoy doing the smaller, 5-page stories that appeared towards the end of the run: the Scraplets story, where Dreadwind and Darkwing get drunk, the Nightbeat PI story, and 'Shut Up', the silent Bludgeon escape story.

TF: Which Transformers comic have you received the most feedback for?

SF: Probably US issue #75, because that's when my penchant for killing off characters went into hideous overdrive. People still tell me how moved they were when Scorponok dies. Me, I just thought it was fun!

TF: There were a number of artists that drew the Transformers comics you wrote; including Geoff Senior, Andy Wildman, Jose Delbo, and Dwayne Turner. Was there a particular artist that you believe really brought your work to life more so than the others?

SF: Different artists brought different things to the strip. When I was working with Andrew on the US strip, I felt we were both really cooking (creatively). That was a great time. But Geoff brought a real sense of the epic to his work, and with Transformers that was a definite plus. But I've worked with a host of very talented people on the strip(s), notably Lee Sullivan, Bryan Hitch, Barry Kitson, Derek Yaniger (whose last page shot of a seriously trashed Megatron and his 'Alas Poor Bludgeon' cover are among my all-time favourites) and now, of course, Don Figueroa. But of all the artists, my favourite COVER artist, was Jerry Paris. His wrap-around cover to UK #150 (coloured magnificently by John Burns) is mind-blowing.

TF: The Transformers comics had an overall darker tone than the cartoon and there were a number of discrepancies between them. Had you ever seen any episodes of the Transformers cartoons and if so, what did you think of them?

SF: I've seen lots of the cartoon series, and any gaps are being filled in quite nicely by the Rhino DVD releases. On the whole, I think they're good fun. Different, but definitely fun. The first couple of seasons are great, but I think they stumbled once they started featuring the movie characters.

TF: And while we're on the subject of the cartoon, characters like Grimlock, Jazz, and Soundwave had very distinctive mannerisms in the cartoon show, which seemed to carry over to the comics as well. Did the cartoon characterizations have any effect on the way you portrayed them in the comics?

SF: Sure. The cartoons were what, to a large extent, I had to work with. But I already knew (as we were going to be following the comic continuity) that I had to make changes. Grimlock I changed the most. I was never happy with his cartoon incarnation. I don't know what it was, but I just felt there should be more to him.

TF: Who is your favorite Autobot character?

SF: If we're including Dinobots, then Grimlock (Swoop a close second). If we're not, then maybe Ultra Magnus, or Nightbeat, or... oh I don't know.

TF: Who is your favorite Decepticon character?

SF: Galvatron. But as a kind of double-act, Megatron and Starscream. Though I did enjoy using some of the marginal toy characters like Bludgeon and Thundercracker and making them interesting, in a kick-ass sort of way.

TF: Was it necessary to get approval from Hasbro for every Transformers story you wrote? If so, what did Hasbro think of the Primus religion theme? Do you know whether Hasbro ever considered creating toys based on comic book characters that you created?

SF: We did run story ideas past Hasbro, but I can't think of one occasion where they objected to something we had planned. Occasionally they asked us to feature this character or that character, and we always obliged (even though often it meant bizarre story twists to explain why they were appearing ahead of the US issue that featured their introduction). There was no comeback on Primus one way or the other, and certainly no mention of a toy (after all, he was an energy being and then a non-transforming planet... so I'm not sure how a toy would have worked).

TF: How did your views of Grimlock change over the course of your run in the comic? In the same vein, are you privy to the reason the Dinobots got their own speech balloon style during the Generation Two comics, distinct from both Autobot and Decepticon?

SF: Grimlock did change, but only I think because I was changing more as a writer, and looking to give my characters more depth and range. The reason Grimlock and the Dinos got their own speech balloons was just another example of letterer, Richard Starkings (he of Comicraft) going that extra half mile. Having script edited me at Marvel UK, he knew his Dinos from his Autobots, and acted accordingly. He put an awful lot of thought and time into the fonts/styles he used on that series.

TF: There are a number of elements from the UK comics, Deathbringer for instance, which appear in the US comics. Were the US comics meant to be a direct follow on of the UK comics?

SF: Not exactly, but I was trying to tie them closer together. In the past, the UK strips had always been slaves to the US strips. We had to loop our stories in with the US issues. But now I was doing both, I tried hard to be aware of both and not clash. I figured it wouldn't hurt to loop some stuff in reverse, from US to UK.

TF: Like an Autobot leader, the Decepticon Thunderwing was created with an innate affinity with the Matrix and he is always referred to as 'Lord Thunderwing'. What kind of background does Thunderwing have? Is he some kind of Decepticon or Cybertronian royalty? Does 'Lord Straxus' from the UK comics have a similar background?

SF: Straxus was actually a US comic creation, first appearing back in issue #16 (I think). So I just stuck with it. Somehow it gives the characters more weight, to have people address them as 'Lord'. As for Thunderwing, I don't suppose we had a chance to get into his background, just that after Straxus bit the dust, he took charge on Cybertron. That said, I do adhere to the idea of there being Transformers (on both sides) with a natural affinity with the Matrix, a sort of chosen few (some which went bad).

TF: How many of the late-run Transformers Universe profiles did you write? Did you select which characters got profiles in the comics? Do you know why there weren't profiles for some of the more prominent characters, like Scorponok, Thunderwing, or Bludgeon?

SF: All the TF Universe profiles were handled by Bob Budiansky, bar a few right at the end (which were me). I'm sure, had the comic continued, we'd have got to the others.

TF: The character, the Liege Maximo appeared in the last issue of the Generation Two comics, but was never fully explained before the comic ended. Who, or what, was the Liege Maximo and what plans did you have for him?

SF: Back when Gen 2 was coming to an end, I just knew that there was this other level we hadn't seen, a threat far bigger (and with its roots in TF pre-history) than Jhiaxus. The name had been dropped in before, and even though we wouldn't get to tell the story, I wanted the LM in there. I recently got to conclude the story (as a prose piece with illustrations) in a UK convention exclusive book called Alignment.

TF: The text story "Another Time and Place" bridges the gap between the G1 and G2 comics to an extent. Did the story include content that you would have included in G1, were it not for its early cancellation? Do you consider it required reading to understand the story?

SF: I really need to go back and read Another Time and Place, as I get asked about it a lot. Truth is, I can't remember how much I tried to bridge the gap, and how successful (or otherwise) I was. My feeling is, I probably wrote it with intention but afterwards didn't pay it overmuch attention. My bad.

TF: You wrote the Beast Wars episode "Nemesis Part 2" and it was well received. Will you be writing any more Transformers episodes or other cartoons in the future? What circumstances led to your writing the script? How would you say writing for television is different from writing for comics and which do you enjoy more?

SF: I got the gig on Nemesis 2 through script editor Bob Forward, who thought it would be interesting to see what I could come up with. As it turned out, by the time we'd worked out the details, it was the end of the series, so a lot of the original plans got ditched. I'd love to be involved again, in whatever incarnation, but a lot of the script production is done in Japan these days. Bob gave me excellent advice on writing for TV animation (as opposed to comics). He told me to do everything on the move, never have characters stop and chat when they could be running or doing. You have to fit a whole lot of story into twenty-two minutes of screen time, and so every second is precious.

TF: What do you think about the Japanese series like Victory and Zone? Do you have any plans to work with elements from those story lines?

SF: Don't know the Japanese toys/series at all, so no.

TF: Your "WHO RUNS THE ENGINE" project, in which you are working on with Transformers artist Andy Wildman, looks extremely cool. Did your previous work with the Transformers have any influence on the very industrial look of this online comic? What other projects are you working on?

SF: I think going in, Andrew and I knew that a lot of the people checking out the site (at least initially) would be TransFans, so to an extent we made sure that whatever we did had some kind of resonance there. It wasn't so much the industrial setting, that was always our plan, but we did include the transforming MTE suits with TF in mind. We have several other projects in development under the Wildfur banner, and these can be viewed at WILFUR.NET.

TF: There are hundreds of Transformers fanfics, based on your work, up on the Transformers fanfic site LEXICON How does it feel to have had such an influence on Transformers fans and do you have any advice for the budding writers out there?

SF: I'm always very pleased to think that people have got enough out of what I wrote to feel inspired to continue or evolve the ideas and situations. It's a great compliment. If I've even peripherally inspired someone to write, then I'm a happy man. My advice to writers is this, have the courage of your convictions: don't just follow the crowd or do whatever's in vogue (things change so fast, and by the time your story's done, chances are things have moved on again). Write what pleases and fires you, and that enthusiasm and belief will translate to your readers.

TF: How did your wrangle to deal with Dreamwave for War Within?

SF: It was kind of me pestering Pat Lee, and Pat finally realizing it might well be something he wanted also.

TF: What's different about this comic than the ones you've done before?

SF: It's different in as much as it's all set on Cybertron, it's the stuff that's only been skated over in other incarnations, and is not layered in reams of continuity. Dreamwave made the decision to start from scratch, and I'm pleased they did. It's worked well. I also wanted to give more depth to characters like Prime and Megatron. I was never happy with one of them just being good and noble, and the other bad and badder. Conquest to me is not enough of a motive, and I'm sorry, I just don't buy that a peace-loving race would automatically want or be able to fight.

TF: Can you give us any hints about what can we expect to see in the coming War Within issues?

SF: Cybertron shaken to its core, literally. An all-out Decepticon attack on Iacon. Prime vs. Megatron for the first time. Some really weird Matrix stuff, and Prime and Grimlock in each others' faces. That enough for you?

TF: Is The War Within intended to resolve some of the Transformers universe continuity issues?

SF: As I've said, there are no continuity issues to resolve. What you see in the comics is what's what. The upcoming profiles book from Dreamwave will establish a lot of the new continuity. The only thing I really exported from the existing comic continuity was to have Grimlock on Cybertron, not created on Earth.

TF: What's your view on the continuity and/or dis-continuity in Transformers stories over the years? Do you think it should it be altered or left the way it is?

SF: I think left the way it is. There's just too much to reconcile, unless you go for the alternate universes theory. The Dreamwave comic continuity will become to the new standard for that side of things, and the animated series will go its own way, as per usual. But as Hasbro are starting to recognize what a strong voice TF fandom has, it wouldn't surprise me if they start to pull in some storythreads from other generations in whatever follows Armada.

TF: What do you find most challenging about writing for TF comics now as opposed to your early work in the 80's?

SF: The weight of expectation mostly. Back in the 80s, we were (to an extent) writing on new slate, creating the mythos. Now, it's a matter of recreating, and not ticking off a lot of people in the process. Everybody knows TF inside and out, and I know now (as opposed to then) everything I do will be analyzed and examined with a fine toothcomb. I won't be able to get away with anything!

TF: There's a lot of angry people in the UK now that Hasbro has clamped down on Diamond distributing their products outside the USA. What can you tell us about this being in the U.K. yourself?

SF: Only that one way or another people will get their TF US comics fix. Someone will step in, I'm sure, and look to import under license. My hope is, the delay will be minimal, and not too many issues will fall into the void.

TF: Can you give us any details on the UK only comic you'll be working on with Panini?

SF: Marvel (Panini) UK will be producing a new comic for early 2003. It will contain originated strip, written by me (at least initially). Page count, artists, launch, etc are all tbc. The storyline will re-tell the set-up/origin and then go in a slightly different direction (and with a different focus) to either the TV show or the US comic.

TF: What will you do different with the Armada comic than what we've seen thus far?

SF: If we're talking US, then my aim to broaden the scope of the story, bring in new MiniCon teams, new Autobots and Decepticons. I want to escalate things, emphasize the galactic nature of this story. With issue #8, we launch into a big storyline (with new artist Guido Guidi) that paints a very different picture of MiniCons.

TF: What is your opinion of the fandom? Do you visit the TF fan Web sites much?

SF: I do visit a lot of sites, as there's inevitably stuff on them I need to know about. The fan sites have been particularly useful in Armada terms, as the TV show isn't on in the UK currently. I have, however, now had an Armada video marathon, so I'm a lot more up to speed on what's what and who's who.

TF: Where do you see Transformers heading in the next five years?

SF: Onwards and upwards I hope. I certainly don't see it flagging anytime soon. The best thing is that Hasbro is solidly behind the brand again, and it's excelling in terms of sales and profile. New comics, Titan tpbs, ongoing TV series and new toys. It's an exciting time to be a Transfan.

TF: If you could change just one thing about the Transformers, story or fandom, what would it be?

SF: My own real wish is that people would give comic and TV equal standing, and not get so anti-one, pro the other. I just don't see why they can't exist happily side by side.

TF: Finally are you Autobot or Decepticon?

SF: Well, I have to admit I prefer writing the bad-guy stuff. Villains are just so much more interesting. Wa-ha-ha-ha!

There you have it! Hope you enjoyed it! Thanks to Simon and the great people at Titan Books for making this happen.

Data Center

Transformers Shops

Advertise Here on TFormers.com

Shop Online for Transformers United

Transformers Shopping



More Generation 1 News & Reviews



Advertise on TFormers.com








This site uses cookies for site configuration, advertising, and analysis. By using this site you accept our policies - Read Full Site Policy OK
Sign Up For The TNI Newsletter And Have The News Delivered To You!


Forums Communities: Toy Fans - Marvel Fans - Transformers Fans

@ToyNewsI Socials: Facebook - Twitter - Instagram

@MarvelousNews Socials: Facebook - Twitter - Instagram

@Tformers Socials: Facebook - Twitter - Instagram

@JediInsider Socials: Facebook - Twitter - Instagram

Entertainment News International (ENI) is the #1 popular culture network for adult fans all around the world.
Get the scoop on all the popular comics, games, movies, toys, and more every day!

Contact and Support

Advertising | Submit News | Contact ENI | Privacy Policy

©Entertainment News International - All images, trademarks, logos, video, brands and images used on this website are registered trademarks of their respective companies and owners. All Rights Reserved. Data has been shared for news reporting purposes only. All content sourced by fans, online websites, and or other fan community sources. Entertainment News International is not responsible for reporting errors, inaccuracies, omissions, and or other liablities related to news shared here. We do our best to keep tabs on infringements. If some of your content was shared by accident. Contact us about any infringements right away - CLICK HERE