Seibertron.com Energon Pub Forums

[Burn]

So, thoughts on the last panel of 'LL #13? I'm definitely intrigued.

Intriguing yes, here's hoping it has a good pay off.

I'd hope for more stories involving Ten, but it'll just end up taking away the mystique of the character.

[Lore Keeper]

So, thoughts on the last panel of 'LL #13? I'm definitely intrigued.

Intriguing yes, here's hoping it has a good pay off.

I'd hope for more stories involving Ten, but it'll just end up taking away the mystique of the character.

He's been an enigma since his introduction. The Legislators are supposedly sparkless drones, but we know that many of them were built from the remains of the slaughtered Circle of Light. I've long suspected that Ten is one of these, and that there is somehow some remnant of his original self in there. The ending of this issue makes me more convinced of this. Now I'm just trying to figure out who he used to be.

[Va'al]

So, thoughts on the last panel of 'LL #13? I'm definitely intrigued.

Intriguing yes, here's hoping it has a good pay off.

I'd hope for more stories involving Ten, but it'll just end up taking away the mystique of the character.

He's been an enigma since his introduction. The Legislators are supposedly sparkless drones, but we know that many of them were built from the remains of the slaughtered Circle of Light. I've long suspected that Ten is one of these, and that there is somehow some remnant of his original self in there. The ending of this issue makes me more convinced of this. Now I'm just trying to figure out who he used to be.

I side with Burn (I think) on this one.

Ten has been a really interesting character to see develop without having to go the same route as current Grimlock - except for this issue, as you'll see - for 'further layers', which in my opinion are entirely unnecessary at this stage. Setting up a really interesting character only to weave it into a pattern that wasn't really there to begin with can get tiresome after the ..fourth time?

Neil Gaiman has used it as his go-to trope for most of his writing, and I'd like to not see more 'not who you really think they are' characters keep appearing all across the universe. I get the spin on the 'in Disguise' bit, but it can easily get overdone!

[ArmadaPrime]

The Ten thing is intriguing, and personally I'm not expecting it to be a big reveal about some secret he's been keeping. He's been shown to be very intelligent and skilled before (forcefield on the necroworld, his sculptures and other artwork), I figure that maybe whatever is causing Everything To Go Nuts has also reversed the limitation on his voice box?
As for the preview, I really enjoyed it! Tarn was a treat, nickel and the scavengers sounds like fun dynamic, and the Shockwave thing? I saw it as shock blasting his own audio receptor off, which most would hesitate to do but shocks would find to be a perfectly logical solution. I'll check the panel again, maybe I'm projecting my own ideas onto it!

[not_a_bot]

[ The Legislators are supposedly sparkless drones, but we know that many of them were built from the remains of the slaughtered Circle of Light. I've long suspected that Ten is one of these, and that there is somehow some remnant of his original self in there. The ending of this issue makes me more convinced of this. Now I'm just trying to figure out who he used to be.

Good idea, let me spin this even further: everyone is somehow reverting to an earlier state.

Edit: due to "threadbare space", I mean.

Skp shrinks down.
Ratchets hands belong to a dead mech, and so they turn dead.
Rewind is supposed to be dead in this universe, and so he is on the verge of expiring.
Cyclonus used to be a lot angrier before.
Whirl just might have been a lot more compassionate and insightful before empurata.
Ten... well, becomes whoever he used to be.

Did I miss someone?

[Va'al]

Scadventures
(Spoiler free-ish)

Synopsis
MACGUFFIN QUEST! The Scavengers have never had it so good. The war is a receding memory, their patchy service records have been forgotten, and the five of them can roam the galaxy as they please. All’s well that ends well? Not quite. Because unbeknownst to Krok and Co., their next adventure… will be their last.

Canhuddleing

Story

It's been a surprisingly short time since the last issue of Transformers: Lost Light, and we may be finally catching up not only on releases, but also with the story and the various threads (bare?) running through the series up to this point - though in an entirely different direction this month! How so? Read on below.

oh just ignore us major villains floating away

First off, I want to say that I really enjoyed this issue in spite of/despite all my misgivings for the run so far, and I can find no discernible reason why that may be the case. I have two major points to address in terms of execution, but overall, issue #14 is enjoyable, extremely important from a plot perspective, and does some very good work with an established cast.

they're good Cons, Brent

My issue then: the pacing. There is a lot going on in the issue, and that is an entirely welcome development for the series, as I said above, as it feels more like we're catching up to speed with where the rest of the universe is. But, that said, some of it feels a little too fast, even with the lynchpins of Nickel and Grimlock serving to anchor the threads in the book.

Hi, lynchpins

On the flip side, those very same story plot threads are incredibly entertaining, and develop some mysteries that are not entirely out of left field but tie up with some of the more established lore so far, while also providing answers to some old and running questions. And to top it all off, the Scavengers' chemistry is a joy to read.


Art

Let me be quite direct here: Sara Pitre-Durocher and Brendan Cahill do some amazing work, each in their own part of the book, and taken alone, they work perfectly fine - I did, however, find a jarring shift between their styles as the books switches. Which is a real shame, as Cahill's chins and panel layouts for some of the more action-based scenes, and Pitre-Durocher's enjoyful villainy at the start and page layouts overall are gorgeous.

Dat perspective

I was wondering if it was, after all, a lack of cohesion in the colouring, by Joana Lafuente puts in some masterful levels of efforts and work in finding the tones and hues that do indeed bring consistency between the styles (different setting also helps) but there's still something clashing between the two takes of the same cast, in my view.

This is pretty spectacular

The lettering, and I know I say this a lot with Tom B. Long, but it is - is just amazing. The sound effects at times take over the soundscape of panels in such a way that makes the action or the silence work perfectly, and they work so well with the colours and lineart.

We've seen the majority of the covers in previous news coverage, from the main Lawrence/Lafuente piece to the variants by Nick Roche and Josh Burcham, and the thumbnailed Cahill/Lafuente one - so you really have a choice of Grimlocks to pick from this week - to check them all out again, head to our database!

Thoughts
Spoilerish ahead

I really enjoyed this chapter in the story, even with the issues I've highlighted above. Discussin it with other staff it feels like the rushed pacing has definitely had a different impression on different readers, so it may very well indeed be more to your speed - and it definitely is good plot propelling and enough of a combing of knots to prepare for what's to come.

Me reading this? nah, too dark

And even with the unfortunate speed bump in art - by no fault I think of the artistic teams, but rather an odd choice of pairing (not the first time this has happened of recent, actually) - catching up with the Scavengers also gives us a really, really intriguing development, with an initial hook (Shockwave and DJD) that has already annoyed a lot of readers I've seen comment; but given that it was, indeed, a hook, it was mischievously well played.

. out of

[ZeroWolf]

Always good to see grimlock back in action, as for the initial hook, people read the previews...they should of known it was just setup

[Randomhero]

I still don’t understand the Magnificance. So Scorponok had it? Then he lost it and it wound up on Troja Major?

Also Grimlock. His chest is unopenable but it’s not?

And I’m sorry but I’m gonna say it again. That opening was just a let down. It did nothing that couldn’t have been said in one sentence of Scorponoks explanation near the end. “Flame and I left with a shockwave when he left Garrus-9 and later we came back and picked up Grimlock.”

It was just a let down and I’m sorry if people wanted to see it and enjoyed it but it didn’t do anything. And yes people will say “it showed how Scorponok got off Garrus-9” we already knew that shockwave took him with. While not confirmed, it was always something that was just put together by people. It wasn’t really a mystery.

[ScottyP]

There's so much to enjoy in this one I don't know where to start. It's a very rewarding experience as an old-timer with this 12+ year continuity.

I have actual work at hand and should come back later when more have had a chance to read it, but that said, to start with: I took Scorponok's lines about Aequitas to imply that there is/was much more under there than just the Magnificence, does that sound right or is it wishful thinking?

[Randomhero]

There's so much to enjoy in this one I don't know where to start. It's a very rewarding experience as an old-timer with this 12+ year continuity.

I have actual work at hand and should come back later when more have had a chance to read it, but that said, to start with: I took Scorponok's lines about Aequitas to imply that there is/was much more under there than just the Magnificence, does that sound right or is it wishful thinking?

Because that’s actually a continuity error. When first revealed something was underneath Aquitus overlord said aquitus was built to hide something and it was built way before the Autobot a took possession of the Magnificance.

There’s a a lot of continuity errors in this issue.

[TF-fan kev777]

I'm calling it now, Grimlock didn't dismember the rest of the scavengers, Spinster did, in a way that keeps them all alive and easily repairable for an escape attempt.

Why else would they focus on him being a surgeon?

[ScottyP]

There's so much to enjoy in this one I don't know where to start. It's a very rewarding experience as an old-timer with this 12+ year continuity.

I have actual work at hand and should come back later when more have had a chance to read it, but that said, to start with: I took Scorponok's lines about Aequitas to imply that there is/was much more under there than just the Magnificence, does that sound right or is it wishful thinking?

Because that’s actually a continuity error. When first revealed something was underneath Aquitus overlord said aquitus was built to hide something and it was built way before the Autobot a took possession of the Magnificance.

There’s a a lot of continuity errors in this issue.

I know the wiki guys posit that it's a continuity error but I don't think the dialogue is unambiguous enough to make that a certainty.

[ScottyP]

I'm calling it now, Grimlock didn't dismember the rest of the scavengers, Spinster did, in a way that keeps them all alive and easily repairable for an escape attempt.

Why else would they focus on him being a surgeon?

Ooh, I like this idea. Why else would there be such a time gap between events like there is? Although with Spinister losing an arm that makes this a little less likely - but I still like the thought!

[Randomhero]

There's so much to enjoy in this one I don't know where to start. It's a very rewarding experience as an old-timer with this 12+ year continuity.

I have actual work at hand and should come back later when more have had a chance to read it, but that said, to start with: I took Scorponok's lines about Aequitas to imply that there is/was much more under there than just the Magnificence, does that sound right or is it wishful thinking?

Because that’s actually a continuity error. When first revealed something was underneath Aquitus overlord said aquitus was built to hide something and it was built way before the Autobot a took possession of the Magnificance.

There’s a a lot of continuity errors in this issue.

I know the wiki guys posit that it's a continuity error but I don't think the dialogue is unambiguous enough to make that a certainty.

It’s pretty certain. Overlord states 6 years ago it was built to hide something and here it’s the Magnificance. Something that wasn’t in Autobot possession at the time of aquitus.

There’s nothing unambiguous about it. I’m sure James has already been asked about it and yet another fix for the trade like usual.

[ZeroWolf]

I still don’t understand the Magnificance. So Scorponok had it? Then he lost it and it wound up on Troja Major?

Also Grimlock. His chest is unopenable but it’s not?

And I’m sorry but I’m gonna day it again. That opening was just a let down. It did nothing that couldn’t have been said in one sentence of Scorponoks explanation near the end. “Flame and I left with a shockwave when he left Garrus-9 and later we came back and picked up Grimlock.”

It was just a let down and I’m sorry if people wanted to see it and enjoyed it but it didn’t do anything. And yes people will say “it showed how Scorponok got off Garrus-9” we already knew that shockwave took him with. While not confirmed, it was always something that was just put together by people. It wasn’t really a mystery.

Sorry to be a bugbear but if it was enjoyed then it did do something. Comics are meant to be entertainment, they tell a tale that is all, if we find that enjoyment then they have done their purpose. As a writer I would be overjoyed if even just one person liked my work, the silver lining on a cloud of disappointment.

[Randomhero]

I still don’t understand the Magnificance. So Scorponok had it? Then he lost it and it wound up on Troja Major?

Also Grimlock. His chest is unopenable but it’s not?

And I’m sorry but I’m gonna day it again. That opening was just a let down. It did nothing that couldn’t have been said in one sentence of Scorponoks explanation near the end. “Flame and I left with a shockwave when he left Garrus-9 and later we came back and picked up Grimlock.”

It was just a let down and I’m sorry if people wanted to see it and enjoyed it but it didn’t do anything. And yes people will say “it showed how Scorponok got off Garrus-9” we already knew that shockwave took him with. While not confirmed, it was always something that was just put together by people. It wasn’t really a mystery.

Sorry to be a bugbear but if it was enjoyed then it did do something. Comics are meant to be entertainment, they tell a tale that is all, if we find that enjoyment then they have done their purpose. As a writer I would be overjoyed if even just one person liked my work, the silver lining on a cloud of disappointment.

And that’s why participant ribbons are no a thing.

“Don’t look at the bad only look at the good! Everyone is a winner!”

Doesn’t mean you have to ignore the problems. Seeing them and pointing them out gives the opportunity to learn and grow

[D-Maximal_Primal]

I enjoyed the issue too, all the Scorponok stuff coming together is making me happy and re-reading older stories has been fun to do.

So the Warren is brought up here again, and I can't help but wonder if Getaway actually used the Warren to find Scorponok's base of operations instead of Cyberutopia, and that is how the Lost Light itself will come to meet the scorponok and Scavengers threads.

So the magnificance game to G9 after Aequitus was created and left dormant, but what if there was actually a vault underneath that was built before it, and the magnificance was just hid there temporarily, and other stuff might be in there too that pre-dated the magnificance being there.

The magnificance being a part of a knight of Cybertron was an interesting concept, and it's further tying together the decepticon part of the story with the other parts. The choice of the characters involved with this story 10 years in the making or something like that is awesome.

And I say again, there is no coincidence that Rodimus is once more involved with the magnificance. I'm thinking the magnificance will somehow link to Rodimus and bring him and the displaced crew back to the main story to find Scorponok with Grimlock and the Scavengers with the Lost Light crew having been brought there as well, linking all the story parts up.

[ArmadaPrime]

I'm calling it now, Grimlock didn't dismember the rest of the scavengers, Spinster did, in a way that keeps them all alive and easily repairable for an escape attempt.

Why else would they focus on him being a surgeon?

Ooh, I like this idea. Why else would there be such a time gap between events like there is? Although with Spinister losing an arm that makes this a little less likely - but I still like the thought!

A (slightly) different angle: Spinster is specifically a neurosurgeon, right? Or at least, a surgeon with enough knowledge of neurosurgery to reverse the Luna 1 animals. The magnificence chamber in Grim is not only matrix-core shaped, but also brain module shaped, if a little oversized. It's implied that it linked somehow to his brain,
and it's absence is what caused him to go non-communicative. Yet suddenly, he's found his voice again. Perhaps some kind of merged scavenger brain in his chest cavity? Weirder things have happened, and most of the scavengers did have their heads detached in the last panel...

[Va'al]

I still don’t understand the Magnificance. So Scorponok had it? Then he lost it and it wound up on Troja Major?

Also Grimlock. His chest is unopenable but it’s not?

And I’m sorry but I’m gonna day it again. That opening was just a let down. It did nothing that couldn’t have been said in one sentence of Scorponoks explanation near the end. “Flame and I left with a shockwave when he left Garrus-9 and later we came back and picked up Grimlock.”

It was just a let down and I’m sorry if people wanted to see it and enjoyed it but it didn’t do anything. And yes people will say “it showed how Scorponok got off Garrus-9” we already knew that shockwave took him with. While not confirmed, it was always something that was just put together by people. It wasn’t really a mystery.

Sorry to be a bugbear but if it was enjoyed then it did do something. Comics are meant to be entertainment, they tell a tale that is all, if we find that enjoyment then they have done their purpose. As a writer I would be overjoyed if even just one person liked my work, the silver lining on a cloud of disappointment.

And that’s why participant ribbons are no a thing.

“Don’t look at the bad only look at the good! Everyone is a winner!”

Doesn’t mean you have to ignore the problems. Seeing them and pointing them out gives the opportunity to learn and grow

No one is ignoring the bad.

[ZeroWolf]

I still don’t understand the Magnificance. So Scorponok had it? Then he lost it and it wound up on Troja Major?

Also Grimlock. His chest is unopenable but it’s not?

And I’m sorry but I’m gonna day it again. That opening was just a let down. It did nothing that couldn’t have been said in one sentence of Scorponoks explanation near the end. “Flame and I left with a shockwave when he left Garrus-9 and later we came back and picked up Grimlock.”

It was just a let down and I’m sorry if people wanted to see it and enjoyed it but it didn’t do anything. And yes people will say “it showed how Scorponok got off Garrus-9” we already knew that shockwave took him with. While not confirmed, it was always something that was just put together by people. It wasn’t really a mystery.

Sorry to be a bugbear but if it was enjoyed then it did do something. Comics are meant to be entertainment, they tell a tale that is all, if we find that enjoyment then they have done their purpose. As a writer I would be overjoyed if even just one person liked my work, the silver lining on a cloud of disappointment.

And that’s why participant ribbons are no a thing.

“Don’t look at the bad only look at the good! Everyone is a winner!”

Doesn’t mean you have to ignore the problems. Seeing them and pointing them out gives the opportunity to learn and grow

But I'm not seeing a problem and other people aren't either. Sounds like you just want Roberts to change to suit what you want. This is why I said what I did about opinions not being facts. The bits you have problems with are just your take on them.

[Ironhidensh]

I still don’t understand the Magnificance. So Scorponok had it? Then he lost it and it wound up on Troja Major?

Also Grimlock. His chest is unopenable but it’s not?

And I’m sorry but I’m gonna day it again. That opening was just a let down. It did nothing that couldn’t have been said in one sentence of Scorponoks explanation near the end. “Flame and I left with a shockwave when he left Garrus-9 and later we came back and picked up Grimlock.”

It was just a let down and I’m sorry if people wanted to see it and enjoyed it but it didn’t do anything. And yes people will say “it showed how Scorponok got off Garrus-9” we already knew that shockwave took him with. While not confirmed, it was always something that was just put together by people. It wasn’t really a mystery.

Sorry to be a bugbear but if it was enjoyed then it did do something. Comics are meant to be entertainment, they tell a tale that is all, if we find that enjoyment then they have done their purpose. As a writer I would be overjoyed if even just one person liked my work, the silver lining on a cloud of disappointment.

And that’s why participant ribbons are no a thing.

“Don’t look at the bad only look at the good! Everyone is a winner!”

Doesn’t mean you have to ignore the problems. Seeing them and pointing them out gives the opportunity to learn and grow

See though, you aren't pointing out problems, you are actively going after people who enjoyed the issue because how dare they!

The whole point Va'al has been making is that it's fine to be critical about the work, or even the artist. It is NOT okay to be critical about somebody enjoying that which you don't.

Random hero, that is what you are doing. It may not be your intention, but that is how you come across: mad because somebody had the sheer nerve to enjoy something you didn't. Be critical all you want, but stop attacking other for enjoying it. Goddamn.


On topic .......


This was another fun issue. It felt like old times to me. The scavengers are that group of friends you can always meet for drinks, no matter how long it's been.

I just finished up a massive re-read of the IDW series, and I gotta say, when read straight through, most of my previous issues disappear.

[ricemazter]

I found this issue to just be okay. It mostly felt like a whole lot of exposition with some bright spots that could've used more coverage.

I haven't really been interested in Nickel, but the idea that there's still this disconnect between her and other Decepticons is really cool and puts her change of heart at the end of DotL into perspective. She doesn't regret that she aided and abetted in the butchering of perhaps thousands of her fellow cons; that was for the cause. She just regrets that Tarn treated "innocent" cons as expendable. That's a neat idea I wish wasn't shut down immediately.

It was also nice to hang out with the scavengers again, but unfortunate that this was an "explain the plot" issue. This cast really works better within self contained stories.

[Va'al]

I found this issue to just be okay. It mostly felt like a whole lot of exposition with some bright spots that could've used more coverage.

I haven't really been interested in Nickel, but the idea that there's still this disconnect between her and other Decepticons is really cool and puts her change of heart at the end of DotL into perspective. She doesn't regret that she aided and abetted in the butchering of perhaps thousands of her fellow cons; that was for the cause. She just regrets that Tarn treated "innocent" cons as expendable. That's a neat idea I wish wasn't shut down immediately.

It was also nice to hang out with the scavengers again, but unfortunate that this was an "explain the plot" issue. This cast really works better within self contained stories.

I almost agree with this, but to me the work done with Nickel and the Scavengers cast elevated the okayness to good. Plus, I'm actually happy about having the Scavengers join the wider universe in such a 'significant' way - not like they were entirely separated from it so far, but having them almost central to the wider plot is ..refreshing? Not the right word, but almost.

[Burn]

I just ... I had this big long post typed out in regards to this latest issue, but it's the same thing I've been saying again and again, I'm over IDW expecting me to remember something that happened five or so years ago.

This issue had potential otherwise. And hey, it's definitely better than Transformers vs Magic Flehsbags.

[Genericon #378]

Yeah, I'm not buying the whole 'death' of the Scavengers for a second. Worse things have happened to other characters, and they're fine. Red Alert took his own head off when he tried to kill himself. Hell, Rung's entire head exploded and he's alive. Getaway's been reduced to a torso with no voice before. The point is, killing them now is wasted potential.