Transformers And Back To The Future Are Crossing Over In A Cool Way

Optimus Prime and Marty McFly from Transformers and Back to the Future

Not only were Transformers and Back to the Future among the most popular entertainment properties of the 1980s, they both are still beloved in the modern era. Now these two worlds are gearing up to collide, as it’s been announced that a four-issue comic book series called Transformers / Back to the Future is on the way.

Hailing from IDW Publishing, which has published various separate Transformers and Back to the Future comic book series in years past, Transformers / Back to the Future has come together as part of a special toy collaboration between the two properties. An all-new Autobot character has been created named Gigawatt has been created to commemorate the 35th anniversary of the first Back to the Future movie, with this particular robot in disguise’s vehicle form being Doc Brown’s cherished time-traveling DeLorean.

The Gigawatt toy stands at 5.5 inches in “Robot mode” and can convert into “Time Machine mode” in 17 steps, not to mention that it comes with “a blaster and whip antennae accessories” and boasts cool Back to the Future-related details, like Doc Brown-styled goggles, time circuits and a flux capacitor chest piece. Gigawatt will be available for purchase on Walmart’s website starting tomorrow, July 3, though that release is limited to 1,985 pieces. A second variant release will follow on October 1 through Hasbro Pulse.

Now that you know what Gigawatt’s deal is, it should be abundantly clear that he’ll be a major player in the Transformers / Back to the Future comic book series. The story sees Marty McFly returning to 1985 Hill Valley, only to have his life shaken up soon after. With Doc Brown’s time machine attracting the attention of the Decepticons, and Marty making one small mistake, he’ll be thrust into an adventure to “stop the Decepticon plot in the past, present, and future.” Fortunately, he won’t be alone, as the time-traveling Autobot known as Gigawatt will be by his side.

Take a look at the cover for the first issue of Transformers / Back to the Future below, which shows Gigawatt in all his glory.

Transformers / Back to the Future Gigawatt cover

While this marks the first time Back to the Future is crossing over with another property within a come book series, this is well-treaded territory for Transformers. At IDW alone, the robots in disguise have crossed paths with G.I. Joe, Star Trek, Ghostbusters, The Terminator, The X-Files and Mars Attacks, and they even have a crossover with My Little Pony slated for later this summer.

Since there are still no plans to make Back to the Future 4 or reboot the entire film series, this comic book series serves as a way for Back to the Future fans to get more time with Marty McFly. The same goes for Transformers fans, although at least they have more movies to look forward to. Not only are a Bumblebee follow-up and a Beast Wars spinoff being worked on, but an animated movie exploring the Autobots and Decepticons’ origins on the planet Cybertron is in development.

Transformers / Back to the Future #1 arrives on October 1, and be sure to keep checking in with CinemaBlend for other major updates concerning both properties. The next Transformers movie will drop on June 24, 2022, and learn what movies are supposed to hit theaters later this year with our 2020 release schedule.

Adam Holmes
Senior Content Producer

Connoisseur of Marvel, DC, Star Wars, John Wick, MonsterVerse and Doctor Who lore, Adam is a Senior Content Producer at CinemaBlend. He started working for the site back in late 2014 writing exclusively comic book movie and TV-related articles, and along with branching out into other genres, he also made the jump to editing. Along with his writing and editing duties, as well as interviewing creative talent from time to time, he also oversees the assignment of movie-related features. He graduated from the University of Oregon with a degree in Journalism, and he’s been sourced numerous times on Wikipedia. He's aware he looks like Harry Potter and Clark Kent.