Void Rivals

Publication dateJune 14, 2023 – presentNo. of issues7Main character(s)Energon UniverseCreative teamCreated byLorenzo De Felici
Robert Kirkman
Matheus LopesWritten byRobert KirkmanArtist(s)Lorenzo De FeliciLetterer(s)Rus WootonColorist(s)Patricio Delpeche
Matheus LopesEditor(s)Ben Abernathy
Sean Mackiewicz
Jonathan Manning
Bixie Mathieu

Void Rivals is an American comic book ongoing series written by Robert Kirkman, drawn by Lorenzo De Felici, colored by Matheus Lopes, and published by Skybound Entertainment, an imprint of Image Comics.^[1] It is the first installment in the Energon Universe, a shared universe that combines new Transformers and G.I. Joe comics developed by Skybound, in collaboration with Hasbro.^[2] The series debuted on June 14, 2023.^[3]

Premise

Around the Sacred Ring, there is an interplanetary war between Agorrians and Zertonians. In the middle of this, two survivor enemies get lost on a planetoid and must work together to return home, but they also discover their war is based on a cycle of secrets and lies.^[1]

Publication history

Void Rivals was announced in February 2023 as part of an "all-new shared universe" developed by Skybound Entertainment.^[1] The series is being written by Robert Kirkman, drawn by Lorenzo De Felici and colored by Matheus Lopes.^[4] Kirkman and De Felici had previously worked together in another comic titled Oblivion Song.^[5]

Kirkman said, "With every project I do, I’m always trying to challenge myself. One thing I’ve always loved doing is starting small with a story and expanding the depth, scope and stakes as we progress. With Void Rivals we’ll be going bigger than I ever have and at a much faster pace. This project is going to be monumental. I can’t wait for people to see what Lorenzo and I have cooking."^[4]

Sean Mackiewicz, publisher and SVP for Skybound Entertainment, also added, "Void Rivals takes every element fans expect from Skybound comics—incredible worlds, dynamic characters, and jaw-dropping twists—and kicks off our first shared universe. This comic is the start of something we’ll be talking about for years to come."^[4]

By the time issue 1 was published, Skybound announced the series to be part of the Energon Universe, which combines new comics based on Hasbro brands Transformers and G.I. Joe.^[2]

Characters

Agorrians

• Darak
  • Handroid
• Minister Dulin

Zertonians

• Solila
• Zerta
• Premier Zalilak
• Mistress Vill
• Kanela
• Ultum
• Proximus

Cybertronians

• Jetfire
• Shockwave

Quintessons

• Judge
• Prosecutor
• Scorpia
• Allicons

Other

• Goliant
• Skuxxoid

Overview

Title	Issue(s)	Creative team			Release schedule		Ref.
		Writer(s)	Artist(s)	Colorist(s)	Premiere date	Finale date
Void Rivals	1–	Robert Kirkman	Lorenzo De Felici	Matheus Lopes (1–4, 6) Patricio Delpeche (5, 7–)	June 14, 2023	Present	[1]
Energon Universe 2024 Special	One-shot	Daniel Warren Johnson Robert Kirkman Joshua Williamson	Lorenzo De Felici Ryan Ottley	TBA	May 4, 2024 (Free Comic Book Day)		[6]

Reception

The series received positive reviews, with critics praising the surprising guest appearance of several Transformers characters in each issue.^[7]

Issue	Release date	Critic rating	Critic reviews	Ref.
#1	June 14, 2023	9.0/10	11	[8]
#2	July 19, 2023	8.0/10	9	[9]
#3	August 16, 2023	8.6/10	11	[10]
#4	September 27, 2023	7.9/10	8	[11]
#5	October 25, 2023	8.8/10	7	[12]
#6	November 22, 2023	8.2/10	6	[13]
#7	March 6, 2024	8.5/10		[14]
Overall		8.4/10	47	[7]

Collected editions

Title	Material collected	Pages	Publication date	ISBN
Void Rivals, Volume 1: More than Meets the Eye	Void Rivals #1–6	136	February 20, 2024	1684158958, 978-1684158959
Void Rivals, Volume 2: Hunted Across the Wasteland	Void Rivals #7–12	128	September 3, 2024	1534328378, 978-1534328372

See also

• Energon Universe
• List of comics based on Hasbro properties

References