New Mairghread Scott And Sarah Stone Interview On Developing Windblade

Steve: This miniseries comes about following the end of the Dark Cybertron crossover event, which saw things get very bad for all the Transformers. What kind of world is Windblade entering into as your story begins?

Mairghread: It’s a world that mirrors our own in a lot of ways. The war is over, but there are huge problems that everyone knows about but no one has been able to solve yet. The leadership is corrupt, but not freakishly evil. People are focused on making it day-to-day and the milestones characters set for themselves are getting smaller all the time. No one’s really dreaming the big dream anymore and that’s something Windblade is going to change – or try to, at least.

Steve: What do you think defines Windblade as a character? When you sat down with the character, what did you want to emphasize about her personality?

Sarah: What stands out for Windblade to me is her determination despite being completely overwhelmed. She’s thrust into this situation and conflict that most Cybertronians have had centuries to get adjusted to, but she has to adapt right now, and you can tell she’s behind the curve and it’s taking its toll. I wanted her to show signs of this weathering but she’s still trying her hardest anyway. She’s not perfect – she gets shaken up and lost, and I think we can all relate to that a little bit.

Mairghread: Our book starts a bit after the end of Dark Cybertron, so no one is in active triage-mode anymore as they would be during a huge life-or-death struggle like that was. Plus Windblade is an optimist. She really believes that she can help make Cybertron better, that everyone can help Cybertron be better. Whether or not she’s right, that’s a whole different story.

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Steve: Is it difficult to draw personality onto a robotic character? That question may be a little racist against robots, sorry

Sarah: It might be, but I live for it. It’s arguably one of my favorite parts of drawing the bots. I really love taking atypical features and giving them expression, just like we read expressions on animals without the same cues that we get from people. I love thinking about how personality can be expressed through their different features.

How does this guy hold his wings, can his helmet be used as sort of a brooding brow, does this part move when they’re scared? Stuff like that makes my job really fun.