Image via Skybound Entertainment
Published May 18, 2026, 9:00 PM EDT
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Critics and audiences agree that bringing G.I. Joe and Transformers together in the Energon Universe was one of Robert Kirkman's best ideas. The creator recently revealed that the inception of the comic book franchise actually came from a place of boredom and sadness.
During a keynote speech at ComicsPRO 2026, Robert Kirkman recalled envisioning the Energon Universe while passing the time constructing Transformers figurines during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“In the pandemic I got bored, and I got sad, and I found myself wanting to go back to simpler times. I bought an embarrassing number of very expensive, very complicated Transformer statues. They would sometimes take the better part of a full day to assemble them, and I would just stare at them for hours after I was done. Thinking back to my love of G.I. Joe and Transformers in that dark period of time, it was a beacon of powerful nostalgia that helped me immensely.”
The current Chief Operating Officer for Image Comics then adds that, shortly after his nostalgia fix with Transformers: Robots in Disguise, he learned that Hasbro was accepting offers to acquire the creative licenses for the G.I. Joe and Transformers properties. Kirkman quickly assembled his team at Skybound Entertainment, which he also co-founded, and a few months later, they had the tools they needed to make the Energon Universe a reality.
The franchise, serving as the successor to IDW Publishing's Hasbro Comic Book Universe, follows a series of adventures involving characters from the worlds of G.I. Joe, Transformers, and M.A.S.K. The glue holding the Energon Universe together is Kirkman and Lorenzo De Felici's original title, Void Rivals, which saw the beginning of the shared universe when it launched in mid-2023.
Kirkman did not hold back from expressing praise for Skybound's work on the Energon Universe, which celebrates its third anniversary this summer, and went so far as to compare its success to his two most acclaimed previous creations, The Walking Dead and Invincible. He said, "Taking those well-known, well-worn franchises and turning them into something new, a deeply interconnected universe that is woven together with very tight continuity, injected with new characters in Void Rivals, is honestly something I’m as excited to work on as I would be as a fan to read it. I just love it.”
A G.I. Joe/Transformers Movie Has Been Teased
Image via Paramount Pictures / Courtesy Everett CollectionOf course, Robert Kirkman is not the first creator to ever suggest bringing the characters of G.I. Joe and Transformers into one franchise. In fact, in the same year that the Energon Universe debuted, Paramount announced that a movie combining the properties was in development.
The announcement came in the form of a cliffhanger from Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, a prequel to the live-action series that was originally helmed by Michael Bay. The scene sees Anthony Ramos' character, Noah Diaz, following his adventure with the Autobots in mid-1990s New York, being offered to join a secret military organization called G.I. Joe.
The fate of the cinematic crossover event has been put into question more recently following Paramount's merger with Skydance, which went into full effect in 2025. However, at this year's CinemaCon, new movies based on both Transformers and G.I. Joe were announced, rekindling some faith in the project.
Both franchises began as toy lines, with G.I. Joe debuting in 1964 and the Transformers, which initially appeared as motor vehicles until the user reveals the robotic warrior hiding underneath, being released in tandem with its first animated series twenty years later. The first G.I. Joe cartoon debuted a year earlier.
However, the mechanical warriors of Cybertron got to hit the big screen first with the 1986 release of the animated The Transformers: The Movie, which ended up struggling at the box office, leading to G.I. Joe: The Movie going straight to video in 1987. The live-action Transformers movie franchise launched in 2007, spawning four sequels and the aforementioned prequel, which led to the 2009 release of G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, which was followed by 2013's G.I. Joe: Retaliation and the 2021 spin-off, Snake Eyes.
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First Film Transformers
Latest Film Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
First TV Show The Transformers
Latest TV Show Transformers: EarthSpark
Cast Peter Cullen, Wil Wheaton, Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Luna Lauren Velez, Dominique Fishback
Transformers is a media franchise produced by American toy company Hasbro and Japanese toy company Takara Tomy. It primarily follows the heroic Autobots and the villainous Decepticons, two alien robot factions at war that can transform into other forms, such as vehicles and animals.
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First Film G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
Latest Film Snake Eyes
Cast Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Christopher Eccleston, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Lee Byung-hun, Sienna Miller, Rachel Nichols, Jonathan Pryce, Saïd Taghmaoui, Channing Tatum, Marlon Wayans, Dennis Quaid, D. J. Cotrona, Adrianne Palicki, Ray Park, Ray Stevenson, Bruce Willis, Dwayne Johnson, Henry Golding, Andrew Koji, Úrsula Corberó, Samara Weaving, Iko Uwais
Spin-offs G.I. Joe Renegades
Spin-offs (Movies) G.I. Joe Chuckles Spinoff
Movie(s) G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, G.I. Joe: Retaliation, Snake Eyes, G.I. Joe: Ever Vigilant
G.I. Joe is a beloved multimedia franchise that has captivated audiences for generations. Spanning action figures, comic books, animated series, and live-action films, G.I. Joe tells the story of a brave team of elite soldiers known as the Joes, who battle the forces of evil embodied by the villainous Cobra organization.
English (US) · 