You would think that a limited series featuring the classic G1 Transformers in a story about the war on Cybertron would be a heck of a ride and, in some cases, you’re right… the problem is, in the effort to make this series as grim as possible, the grittiness dial has been set to eleven when it should have topped out at a seven. The result is a series that looks great, has some very nice action, but contains absolutely no fun.
I will say this, though… this is honestly the first time I have ever seen a series put any effort into giving Megatron any development or motivation beyond, “Mwah ha ha ha, I’m evil!” In “Siege,” Megatron is the traditional leader of the Decepticons, but now the Decepticons are fighting their way into dominance after spending years as a lower-class race, bred into slavery and subjugation. Megatron sees himself as the hero of his own story which is really the best type of antagonist. My favorite thing about Megatron is that you can actually see why he’s a leader. He commands respect not only through force, but through words and charisma. This is a person that you can see as the leader of a devoted cult. You understand why he’s followed.
Unfortunately, that’s really the only extremely positive thing I can say about “Siege” because the rest of it is drab, grim, and dark. While I appreciate the more mature spin on Transformers, I do think that the series completely misses the middle ground it should have at least tried once and a while. The darkness is never ending, many of the hero characters are absolutely unlikeable, and even Optimus Prime suffers from a debilitating lack of personality.
While the animation is spectacular and the action is amazing which is great on a level if all you’re looking for is explosions and pew-pews, but “Siege” feels empty and soulless, bereft of any of the fun or fantasy that made me love Transformers in the first place.
Jason Gaston 