Hasbro Heroes Sourcebook issue 3

Publisher	IDW Publishing
First published	August 30,2017
Cover date	July 2017
Written by	various
Art by	various
Edits by	David MariotteandDavid Hedgecock

Phenolo-PhitoZarana!

Profiles

Phenolo-Phi(written byCullen BunnandJimmyZ Johnston;art byJack LawrenceandAnder Zarate)
Quick Kick(w.Aubrey Sitterson;a.Steve KurthandSimon Gough)
Red Falcon(w. JimmyZ Johnston; a.Jed DoughertyandDavid García Cruz)
Roadblock(w. Aubrey Sitterson; a.Robert Atkinsand Simon Gough)
Rock 'n Roll(w. Aubrey Sitterson; a. Steve Kurth and Simon Gough)
Rom(w.Chris RyallandDavid Mariotte;a.David Messina)
Terrence Salmons(w.John Barber;a.Paolo VillanelliandJohn-Paul Bove)
Scarlett(w. Aubrey Sitterson; a. Robert Atkins and Simon Gough)
Sgt. Savage(w. John Barber; a.Ron JosephandJay Fotos)
Shazraella(w. JimmyZ Johnston; a. Jed Dougherty and David García Cruz)
Bruno Sheppard(w.Brandon M. Easton;a.Sam LotfiandJordi Escuin)
Shipwreck(w. Aubrey Sitterson; a. Paolo Villanelli and John-Paul Bove)
Skywarp(w. John Barber; a.Guido Guidi)
Snake Eyes(w. Aubrey Sitterson; a. Robert Atkins and Simon Gough)
Soundwave(w. John Barber; a. Guido Guidi)
Spectrum(w. Brandon M. Easton; a.Marcelo Ferreiraand Jordi Escuion)
Stalker(w. John Barber; a. Ron Joseph and Jay Fotos)
Starscream(w.Mairghread Scott;a.Sara Pitre-Durocher)
Stiletto(w. Brandon M. Easton; a. Sam Lotfi and Jordi Escuin)
Storm Shadow(w. John Barber; a.Max Dunbarand Ander Zarate)
Thundercracker(w. John Barber; a.Kei Zama)
Victorion(w. John Barber; a. Guido Guidi)
Windblade(w. Mairghread Scott; a. Sara Pitre-Durocher)
Spike Witwicky(w. John Barber; a. Paolo Villanelli and John-Paul Bove)
Zandar(w. Aubrey Sitterson; a. Paolo Villanelli and John-Paul Bove)
Zarana(w. Aubrey Sitterson; a. Paolo Villanelli and John-Paul Bove)

Notes

Profile notes

Quick Kick's real name is given as "Gordon Hung." That's new; historically, his real name is "MacArthur S. Ito."
Terrance Salmons's profile includes references toTriple Ifrom the originalGeneration 1 Marvel comic,and toDonny FinklebergandPeter Anthony Morris,employees of the company in that series. It then dives an order of mangitude deeper and makes reference to the "Schrödinger's BoxAffair, "alluding to a plot from the JapaneseStory of Binaltechthat Triple I was also involved in.
Sgt. Savage notes that his first deployment was in the fictional country ofGalibi.This country was first alluded to inG.I. Joevol. 4 #1,sharing a border with the equally fictionalSchleteva.Savage's profile also describes the Screaming Eagles as initially being encouraged to serve as propaganda soldiers and sell war bonds, as well as being the first racially integrated unit in the Army thanks to Savage's influence; both details are lifted from the history ofCaptain America,who Savage has always been a bit of aknockoffof, from the 2011 filmCaptain America: The First Avenger.
Skywarp and Thundercracker are explicitly identified asoutliersfor the first time, though Thundercracker's profile notes that his powers are limited enough that they might not even qualify.
Stiletto's profile explains a baffling line inM.A.S.K.: Revolution,which claimed that his mask shared the shrinking-and-growing abilities ofJulio Lopez's "Gulliver", before immediately showing him using the classic Stiletto power of firing a spear-like projectile. Here, it's explained that he uses the growth power in conjunction with sharpened darts to create the giantharpoonshe fires.

Errors, omissions, and inconsistencies

The middle word of Rock 'n Roll's codename is traditionally spelled'n,with one apostrophe, inG.I. Joetoylines, which is the spelling that's been used forG.I. Joevol. 5.Here, however, it's been rendered'n'with two apostrophes (a more grammatically correct spelling also used inRevolutionaries#7and#8). AndpastIDW appearances have used an ampersand! So basically... don't worry about it too much.
This issue reprints Scarlett's profile from the backmatter ofRevolution#2in full, including listing Scarlett as a Master Sergeant whenThe Transformers#56,Revolution#0,andRevolution#2's main story had her as the more logical Colonel.
Bruno Sheppard is listed by his full name (his alphabetical position in the series determined by his surname), while the otherM.A.S.K.characters profiled in the issue are listed under their codenames. Bruno's is not even mentioned in his profile; it's "Thunderflame".
Continuing a kind of error from last issue, Shipwreck and Quick Kick's first appearances are listed as issues #40 and #45 of the original MarvelG.I. Joecomic book, respectively. Though thosearethe first issues of that series in which they debuted, their actual first appearances were in theJoecartoon: Shipwreck first appeared in "The Vines of Evil" (which aired in September 1984, versus the June 1985 publication date of issue #40) and Quick Kick first appeared in "Chaos in the Sea of Lost Souls" (which aired in September 1985, versus issue #45's publication date of November 1985).
Victorion's marital status is listed as "single", despite her legs being married to each other.
The heights and weights given for the threeseekersfeel incredibly arbitrary and wildly inconsistent with each other, with Skywarp and Thundercracker somehow being both slightly taller and less than half as heavy as Starscream.
Continuinga trend set by previous issues,Spike Witwicky's military history doesn't really make any sense. Spike apparently "enlisted at age 18", but all previous appearances have depicted him as a commissioned officer rather than an enlisted soldier. What's more, he apparently "became a Naval aviator"... except that Naval aviators are dedicated pilots (thinkTop Gun), and Spike has always been portrayed doing "spec ops" stuff rather than flying aircraft.

Other trivia

Originally solicited for release in July, this issue arrived noticeably late, in the final week of August. It picked up speed alittle,though, arriving within the same month as the already-delayed issue #2.
This issue was advertised as including "a fantastic story leading into the next huge Hasbro event", but winds up having only a four-page preview ofFirst Strike#1 rather than an original strip like the previous two issues did. Editor David Mariotte's introduction to the issue, however, is clearly describing the four-page story fromFirst Strike#0,so obviouslyitwas originally intended for inclusion in this issue. WhileSourcebook#3 was delayed and didn't come until after afterFirst Strike#2,it wassupposedto be released the monthbeforeissue #1, so it seems like theSourcebookdelays prompted the story being pulled from this issue and released as its own thing so that it could actually come out before the crossover began, explaining whyFirst Strike#0 wasn't advance-solicited and basically appeared out of nowhere one day.
The retailer incentive cover, on top of variousRevolutionariescharacters and Optimus Prime, also has a character in silhouette that doesn't really match up with anyone who's had aSourcebookprofile... but itdoesfit the classic design ofLeoricfromVisionaries,which received aHasbro Universe comic seriesin the aftermath ofFirst Strike.Now, why he's on the cover when he doesn't actually have a profile is anyone's guess...

Other printings

Several of the profiles shown were previously published as backmatter in issues ofRevolutionand otherHasbro Universecomics:

Phenolo-Phi inRevolution#5
Roadblock inRevolution#3
Rom inRevolution#2
Scarlett inRevolution#2
Snake Eyes inRevolution#4
Soundwave inRevolution#4
Spectrum (as "Matt Trakker" ) inRevolution#3
Victorion inRevolution#3
Windblade inRevolution#5

Shortened versions of Phenolo-Phi (as "Space Glider" ), Quick Kick, Rock 'n Roll, Rom, Scarlett, Shazraella, Snake Eyes, Soundwave, Spectrum, Stiletto, Victorion, and Windblade's profiles were also released as trading cards through aRevolution-themedHumble Bundle.

Covers (3)

Regular cover:Wraparound cover of the characters profiled in this issue, byFico OssioandJohn-Paul Bove
Subscription cover:Rom, Shipwreck, Scarlett, and Snake Eyes, bySam LotfiandJordi Escuin
Retailer incentive cover:Buncha characters who aren't in the dang ol' issue, byMarcelo Borstelmann