As the Energon Universe featuring characters from Transformers and G.I. Joe is expanding, we take a look back at the previous Comic Book Universe based on several Hasbro brands and published by IDW – The Hasbro Comic Book Universe or HCBU!
IDW picked up the Transformers license in 2005 and obtained the rights for G.I. Joe in 2008, but the Hasbro Comic Book Universe was officially launched in 2016 with the release of the Revolution miniseries, a crossover event involving many characters from Hasbro and establishing a shared universe for all these brands. It was then decided that all the stories previously published were retroactively set in the same continuity.
Revolution wasn’t IDW’s first crossover event connecting several licensed series. The publisher released Infestation at the beginning of 2011 in which a zombie infectation spread between dimensions and reached into the worlds of Transformers, Star Trek, G.I. Joe, and Ghostbusters. None of them interact with each other at any point. A follow up called Infestation 2 was released a year later involving this time The Transformers, Dungeons & Dragons, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, G.I. Joe and 30 Days of Night.
All of these are to say that the Hasbro Comic Book Universe was short-lived, emerging in 2016 and coming to an end in 2018 with the limited series Transformers: Unicron. Following this story, IDW still published a few stories until 2020. And then, the company lost the comic book licenses for Hasbro’s Transformers and G.I. Joe at the end of 2022.
Today, we’re exploring IDW Hasbro Universe with this Reading Order featuring Transformers and G.I. Joe but also Rom, Micronauts, Action Man and M.A.S.K.!
The Brands in the Hasbro Universe
Following is a list of the brands that are part of the Hasbro Comic Book Universe
- Transformers – The Transformers stars shape-shifting robots and tell the story of the old battle between the Autobots and Decepticons.
- G.I. Joe – You know it, G.I. Joe is A Real American Hero! To be more precise, this is the code name for a highly trained special mission force whose mission is to defend human freedom against Cobra, a ruthless terrorist organization determined to rule the world.
- Action Man – Is he the U.K.’s answer to G.I. Joe? Maybe. Action Man is also a code name but for a highly trained operative.
- Micronauts – A team of Misfits from the Microspace that is trying to save their world from the Entropy Cloud and the machinations of Baron Karza.
- Rom – Space Knight, Lord of the Solstar Order. This member of the Galadorian race is also the worst enemy of the evil Dire Wraiths
- M.A.S.K – The acronym for Mobile Armored Strike Kommand, a secret organization fighting crime!
- Visionaries – In the world of Prysmos, the age of magic has pitting the heroic Spectral Knights against villainous Darkling Lords .
The two following brands are also considered part of the Hasbro Universe and same continuity, though are absent from the following list as they are not part of the story for narrative and tonal reasons:
- Clue – Who killed Mr. Boddy in the hall with a candle stick? Clue is the most legendary mystery board game that gave us a cult-classic comedy and inspired this 2017 comic book miniseries from IDW Publishing.
- Jem and the Holograms – The adventures of Jerrica Benton and her band Jem and The Holograms! The title was launched in 2015 with writer Kelly Thompson at the helm and lasted 26 issues. It also had a spin-off title (Misfits), and both were followed by the limited series Jem and the Holograms: Infinite and a short-story collections, Dimensions.
Other Hasbro brands not part of the continuity: My Little Pony, Dungeons & Dragons, Magic: The Gathering, Stretch Armstrong and Go-Bots.
The Hasbro Comic Book Universe Guide
The Hasbro Universe Pre-Revolution
As just explained, the Transformers and G.I. Joe series both started around 10 years before the launch of the Hasbro Comic Book Universe but the previous publication was retroactively set in that continuity.
- Transformers – Check out our Reading Order to discover everything that has been published before the Revolution crossover. This series started with Transformers: Infiltration, and from then, many stories were published including All Hail Megatron, Infestation, Robots in Disguise, Dark Cybertron, Combiner Wars and Titans Returns (the last story before the Revolution!)
- G.I. Joe – Like Transformers, we invite you to consult our G.I. Joe Reading Order to discover all the stories released before the launch of the shared universe. While both series existed before, know that there was no interaction between them before. In terms of timeline, G.I. Joe starts after All Hail Megatron. From this point, you can then choose to read G.I. Joe in parallel to Transformers, starting with G.I. Joe: Origins, and continuing with G.I. Joe, Infestation, Cobra Civil War, Cobra Command, Snake Eyes/Storm Shadow, and Special Missions. Beware, this is not Harry Hama’s G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, set in its own continuity.
After all that, it’s time to dive into other licensed comics! The Hasbro Comic Book Universe started to take shape in 2016 when IDW acquired the rights for Rom, Micronauts, Action Man and M.A.S.K. Before those brands converged, a few stories were released!
- Action Man: Absolute Beginners
Action Man #1-4, Action Man: Revolution #1. From John Barber and Paolo Villanelli - Micronauts: Entropy
Collects Micronauts #1-6. From Cullen Bunn and David Baldeón.
Rom the Spaceknight was reintroduced with Rom #0 as part of the 2016 Free Comic Book Day and a prologue to his new series.
- ROM #0 Free Comic Book Day 2016
- ROM #1-4
Collected in ROM Cold Fire, Hot War
IDW released in the following years several prequel stories exploring Rom’s past from his origins in Annual 2017 to his shared history with Transformers. Read them when you want!
- ROM Annual 2017
Collected in ROM Cold Fire, Hot War - ROM – Tales of the Solstar Order
Not collected - Rom vs. Transformers: Shinning Armor
Collects Rom vs. Transformers: Shining Armor #1-5 - Rom: Dire Wraiths
Collects Rom: Dire Wraiths and back up story.
The Revolution Starts Here!
The Revolution Begins! Explosions rip across the Earth―and all signs of blame point to Optimus Prime and the Transformers! G.I. Joe refuses to go quietly―and they assemble heroes big enough to stop the invaders! Action Man and M.A.S.K. fight for humanity―but where do Rom and the Micronauts stand? This is the moment where everything converges in the same continuity!
Issue-by-Issue Order:
- Revolution #0-1
- ROM: Revolution
- M.A.S.K.: Revolution
- Revolution #2
- The Transformers: Till All Are One: Revolution
- Micronauts: Revolution
- Revolution #3
- G.I. Joe: Revolution
- The Transformers: Revolution
- Action Man: Revolution
- Revolution #4-5
- The Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye: Revolution
The Collected Editions:
- Revolution
Collects Revolution #0-5. - Revolution: Heroes
Collects ROM: Revolution #1, M.A.S.K.: Mobile Armored Strike Kommand: Revolution #1, Micronauts: Revolution #1, G.I. Joe: Revolution #1, Action Man: Revolution #1. - Transformers: Revolution
Collects Till All Are One: Revolution #1, Transformers: Revolution #1, More than Meets the Eye: Revolution #1, and Transformers Holiday Special.
Reconstruction and The Post-Revolution Era
The Revolution has ended. Now is the time for Reconstruction in a world where Transformers, G.I. Joe and more co-exist. Two new Transformers series were launched: Optimus Prime, a sequel to Robots in Disguise, and Lost Light, sequel to More than Meets the Eye focused on Rodimus and Megatron. Spinning out of the events of the Revolution is the new G.I. Joe Series. New adventures also await M.A.S.K., Rom, and the Micronauts.
- Transformers: Lost Light Vol. 1
Collects Transformers: Lost Light #1-6. - Transformers: Lost Light Vol. 2
Collects Transformers: Lost Light #7-12. - Transformers: Till All Are One Vol. 2
Collects Transformers: Till All Are One #5-8. - Transformers: Till All Are One Vol. 3
Collects Transformers: Till All Are One #9-12 and the 2017 Annual. - Transformers: Optimus Prime Vol. 1
Collects Transformers: Optimus Prime #1-6. - Transformers: Optimus Prime Vol. 2
Collects Transformers: Optimus Prime #7-10 and the 2017 Annual. - Micronauts: Earthbound
Collects Micronauts: Revolution #1, Micronauts #7-11 - Rom Vol. 2: Reinforcements
Collects ROM #5-9, Rom Annual 2017 - Rom Vol. 3 The Roads to Ruin
Collects ROM #10-14 - G.I. Joe Volume 1 (2016)
Collects G.I. Joe: Revolution & G.I. Joe (vol. 5) #1–4. - G.I. Joe Volume 2 (2016)
Collects G.I. Joe (vol. 5) #5–8.
Read the adventures of M.A.S.K.: the special ops team that streaks into the dangerous landscape of dark wars, high intrigue, and non-stop action to stop the impossible threat of Miles Mayhem and his black ops squadron, V.E.N.O.M.
- MASK: Mobile Armored Strike Kommand Riding V.E.N.O.M.’s Trail
Collects M.A.S.K. #1-10, Annual #1 and MASK: Revolution #1
Also collected in:
- M.A.S.K. Vol. 1: Mobilize
Collects M.A.S.K.: Revolution #1, M.A.S.K #1-5 - M.A.S.K. Vol. 2: Rise of V.E.N.O.M.
Collects M.A.S.K. #6-10, Annual 2017
Infestation 2! The Elder Gods of H.P. Lovecraft invade the worlds of IDW in Infestation 2! Call of Cthulhu infests 30 Days of Night, Dungeons & Dragons, G.I. Joe, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Transformers. If zombies weren’t bad enough, how do you stop inter-dimensional monsters?
Despite the title, this is not a follow-up to the first Infestation (with zombies) but to the Hearts of Steel, set in an alternate continuity in which Transformers’ first contact with humanity is in the late 19th century.
- The Transformers: Evolutions – Hearts of Steel
Collects Hearts of Steel #1-4 - Infestation 2 Vol. 1
Collects Infestation 2 #1-2, Infestation 2: 30 Days of Night #1, Infestation 2: Team Up #1 - Infestation 2 Vol. 2
Collects Infestation 2: Transformers #1-2, Infestation 2: G.I. Joe #1-2 - Infestation 2 Vol. 3
Collects Infestation 2: Dungeons & Dragons #1-2, Infestation 2: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1-2
The whole event has also been released in the now out-of-print Infestation 2: The Complete Series.
The revolution may be over–but the future is just beginning! Revolutionaries is the follow-up to the Revolution crossover.
- Revolutionaries, Vol. 1: Crisis Intervention
Collects Revolutionaries #1–5. - Revolutionaries, Vol. 2: Power and Glory
Collects Revolutionaries #6–8.
Before the next event, we make a little detour by the Microspace with a 5-issue Micronauts miniseries following Baron Karza’s efforts to conquer Earth!
- Micronauts – Wrath of Karza
Collects Wrath of Karza #1–5
First Strike, the sequel to Revolution
While Revolutionaries was a sort of follow-up, it also set the stage for First Strike, a much bigger event for the Hasbro Comic Book Universe as it started the second year of this shared universe and also served as a soft reboot.
But what is it about? As IDW explained, the “Transformers are under attack from Cobra, G.I. Joe’s greatest enemy! As Earth joins the intergalactic community, a massive explosion threatens the peace! A new Cobra-led by the worst villains to ever tangle with G.I. Joe, M.A.S.K., and the Transformers-is invading Cybertron, and only Scarlett, Optimus Prime, the Joes, and the Autobots can save two worlds! It’s a race to the finish as good fights evil! Will our heroes win, or will Cobra destroy all Transformers?!?”
Issue-by-Issue Order:
- Micronauts – First Strike
- ROM – First Strike
- First Strike #0-1
- Optimus Prime – First Strike
- Transformers – First Strike
- Optimus Prime #11
- First Strike #2-3
- Optimus Prime #12
- First Strike #4-6
- G.I. Joe – First Strike
- M.A.S.K. – First Strike
Collected Editions
- Transformers/G.I. JOE: First Strike
Collects First Strike #0–6. - Transformers/G.I. JOE: First Strike – Champions
Collects Micronauts: First Strike #1, Optimus Prime: First Strike #1, G.I. Joe: First Strike #1, Rom: First Strike #1, Transformers: First Strike #1, M.A.S.K.: Mobile Armored Strike Kommand: First Strike #1.
After the conclusion of First Strike, G.I. Joe and M.A.S.K. were relaunched as Scarlett’s Strike Force while ROM and Micronauts were relaunched as Rom & The Micronauts. Most of The Transformers titles continued, except for Till All Are One (several characters from that comic appear in the Transformers vs. Visionaries miniseries).
- ROM & the Micronauts #1-5
- Transformers: Optimus Prime Vol. 3
Collects Transformers: Optimus Prime #11–14 and the Optimus Prime: First Strike and Transformers: First Strike one-shots. - Transformers: Lost Light Vol. 3
Collects Transformers: Lost Light #13-18. - Scarlett’s Strike Force
Collects G.I. Joe: First Strike, M.A.S.K.: First Strike & Scarlett’s Strike Force #1–3. - Transformers: Optimus Prime Vol. 4
Collects Transformers: Optimus Prime #15-21. - Transformers vs. The Visionaries
Collects Transformers vs. The Visionaries #1-5. - Transformers: The Wreckers Saga
Collects all the stories featuring the Wreckers, including the one-shot Requiem of the Wreckers #1. The individual trades have been placed before Revolution but you can choose to read the whole saga in one sitting here, if you want (though, this collection is out of print!) - Transformers: Lost Light Vol. 4
Collects Transformers: Lost Light #19-25. Warning! While self-contained, Lost Light #25 jumps into the future. Don’t read it there but after Unicron!
Unicron Event and the end of the Hasbro Comic Book Universe
The end is nigh! Unicron, a planet-sized being that devours other worlds, has set its sights on Cybertron and all of its colonies–including Earth! Note that the events in Optimus Prime takes place during and after the Unicron event, and those two series are supposed to be read side-by-side. We also included the last Lost Light issue in this order, as it is set after Unicron. Optimus Prime #25 serves as a final issue!
Issue-by-Issue Order:
- Unicron #0
- Optimus Prime #22
- Unicron #1-3
- Optimus Prime #23-24
- Unicron #5-6
- Lost Light #25 (set after Unicron)
- Optimus Prime #25
Collected Editions
- Transformers: Optimus Prime Vol. 5
Collects Transformers: Optimus Prime #22-25, and 2018 Annual. - Transformers: Unicron
Collects Transformers: Unicron #0-6.
Bonus! Transformers Historia is a one-shot book documenting the 2005-2018 IDW continuity, a retrospective guide to the universe before the new relaunch.
Post-Hasbro Comic Book Universe
The Hasbro Comic Book Universe was not well received by readers and, as you have guessed, simply didn’t help sales. It came to an official end in 2018, with IDW launching a new continuity afterward for G.I. Joe and Transformers before losing the rights in 2022.
Skybound Entertainment – founded by Robert Kirkman and David Alpert – has acquired the licenses for Transformers and G.I. Joe and launched the Energon Universe in June 2023! Take a look at your Energon Universe reading Guide!
Did we forget an important issue? Did we make a mistake? Let us know in the comments!