Full Preview for IDW Transformers: Lost Light #21
Tuesday, July 24th, 2018 8:42AM CDT
Category: Comic Book NewsPosted by: Va'al Views: 15,824
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Check out the preview and join the conversation in the Energon Pub discussion boards, and make sure to join us for the review discussion after the comic book is out this Wednesday!
Transformers: Lost Light #21—Cover A: Jack Lawrence
James Roberts (w) • Jack Lawrence (a & c)
Something is coming. It cannot be stalled. It cannot be avoided. It cannot be reasoned with. As the end of everything draws near, a simple instruction rings out across the universe: prepare, confront, repel.
Some people are ready for the fight of their lives. Rodimus and the increasingly shambolic crew of the Lost Light…yeah, they’re really not. Like, at all.
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Transformers: Lost Light #21—Cover B: Geoff Senior
James Roberts (w) • Jack Lawrence (a) • Geoff Senior(c)
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Bullet points:
Lost Light’s grand finale kicks into high gear!
Features the arrival—at long last—of the Grand Architect!
Don’t miss the B cover by beloved Transformers artist Geoff Senior!
Variant cover by Jack Lawrence!
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Posted by Optimus Prime13th on July 24th, 2018 @ 9:17am CDT
Posted by william-james88 on July 24th, 2018 @ 9:32am CDT
Optimus Prime13th wrote:Anyone else starting to think this "Grand architect" is really just a revived Pharma.
I dont think so. The grand architect is on a higher level than Tyrest and Pharma was below Tyrest so it would be a huge step up for him.
Posted by Optimus Prime13th on July 24th, 2018 @ 9:38am CDT
Posted by MrBlack on July 24th, 2018 @ 9:43am CDT
Optimus Prime13th wrote:Anyone else starting to think this "Grand architect" is really just a revived Pharma. Pharma had his head blown off and his hands remove. Although Pharma did get his hands back he could be having them replaced. And the vocal synthesizer could be explained through it needing to be retuned to match his original voice. Hope this makes some sense. Oh and Pharma was leading the worldsweeps and sparkeaters in drifts vision.
Part of me thinks it is, but would the timing work out? We first saw the Grand Architect rescuing Flame and Scorponok after they fled from the DJD, which was right around the time of LSoTW. Pharma was still on Delphi at the time.
We don't know exactly how long Scorponok and Flame were floating in space before being collected, but it seems unlikely that they were stuck out there until after Pharma was pulled to Mederi (or wherever), particularly where Flywheels was rescued while the war was still going.
Posted by Counterpunch on July 24th, 2018 @ 9:46am CDT
william-james88 wrote:Optimus Prime13th wrote:Anyone else starting to think this "Grand architect" is really just a revived Pharma.
I dont think so. The grand architect is on a higher level than Tyrest and Pharma was below Tyrest so it would be a huge step up for him.
Well, tentacle people pulled him through the gate, so...
Maybe he saw something there and learned something that stepped him up?
Or maybe he's a puppet of that entity?
With Pharma being a doctor and the whole Mederi planet thing being Cybertopia, I think it's a decent theory.
Posted by Randomhero on July 24th, 2018 @ 9:53am CDT
Does seem weird he hasn’t shown up yet in this story and it’s flame building a body...
Posted by ZeroWolf on July 24th, 2018 @ 10:17am CDT
Posted by Randomhero on July 24th, 2018 @ 10:25am CDT
Things from fiction that I could see as the Grand Architect is maybe something like Devil Z or hell how about the Vok?! No one has touched them since 3H they were energy beings that were architects in their own way.
Posted by ScottyP on July 24th, 2018 @ 10:26am CDT
I'm only like 50 pages into Eugenesis but it already has Quints ready to throw some brains into Cybertronian bodies. I'm gonna guess Pharma's body, some Quintesson leader's mind.Counterpunch wrote:william-james88 wrote:Optimus Prime13th wrote:Anyone else starting to think this "Grand architect" is really just a revived Pharma.
I dont think so. The grand architect is on a higher level than Tyrest and Pharma was below Tyrest so it would be a huge step up for him.
Well, tentacle people pulled him through the gate, so...
Maybe he saw something there and learned something that stepped him up?
Or maybe he's a puppet of that entity?
With Pharma being a doctor and the whole Mederi planet thing being Cybertopia, I think it's a decent theory.
Posted by Randomhero on July 24th, 2018 @ 10:38am CDT
Posted by MrBlack on July 24th, 2018 @ 10:39am CDT
ScottyP wrote:I'm only like 50 pages into Eugenesis but it already has Quints ready to throw some brains into Cybertronian bodies. I'm gonna guess Pharma's body, some Quintesson leader's mind.Counterpunch wrote:william-james88 wrote:Optimus Prime13th wrote:Anyone else starting to think this "Grand architect" is really just a revived Pharma.
I dont think so. The grand architect is on a higher level than Tyrest and Pharma was below Tyrest so it would be a huge step up for him.
Well, tentacle people pulled him through the gate, so...
Maybe he saw something there and learned something that stepped him up?
Or maybe he's a puppet of that entity?
With Pharma being a doctor and the whole Mederi planet thing being Cybertopia, I think it's a decent theory.
"The Grand Architect" is a pretty Quintesson sounding name.
Posted by Randomhero on July 24th, 2018 @ 10:40am CDT
Posted by Randomhero on July 24th, 2018 @ 11:22am CDT
Posted by ZeroWolf on July 24th, 2018 @ 11:26am CDT
Posted by Randomhero on July 24th, 2018 @ 11:54am CDT
ZeroWolf wrote:I don't know, I'd feel a bit deflated if it turned out to be a quint, never been a big fan of them and I'm glad they've been no shows. This thing they are supposed to be up against though, I wonder if Roberts is going to have it be a monster straight out of lovecraft...unless he really screwed with people and had unicron eat all the cast so prime and the others had to fight their corrupted bodies in the main unicron series
You just solved it. Roberts is brining back the elder gods from infestation 2!
Posted by Randomhero on July 24th, 2018 @ 12:05pm CDT
Posted by ZeroWolf on July 24th, 2018 @ 12:08pm CDT
Posted by william-james88 on July 24th, 2018 @ 12:17pm CDT
Randomhero wrote:The grand architect has been around for at least 500 years because he was hiring black smiths around the galaxy.
Au fuck, I know who it is then, it's Shockwave. Like that it ties into the Unicron story.
Does anyone here think Lost Light will still be able to be enjoyed as its own title for the next months or do we have to pick up Unicron and Optimus Prime for things to make sense going forward?
Posted by Deadput on July 24th, 2018 @ 12:34pm CDT
william-james88 wrote:Randomhero wrote:The grand architect has been around for at least 500 years because he was hiring black smiths around the galaxy.
Au ****, I know who it is then, it's Shockwave. Like that it ties into the Unicron story.
Does anyone here think Lost Light will still be able to be enjoyed as its own title for the next months or do we have to pick up Unicron and Optimus Prime for things to make sense going forward?
The fact that he's been pretty busy in Op tells me I don't think it's him I'm sure Roberts is keeping his stuff seperate from the rest of Idw.
I feel like it's Quintisons involved but not necessarily the grand architect themselves.
Also I'm pretty sure it was said the Lost Light wasn't going to be involved with Unicron in any way during it's run.
Posted by william-james88 on July 24th, 2018 @ 12:45pm CDT
Deadput wrote:Also I'm pretty sure it was said the Lost Light wasn't going to be involved with Unicron in any way during it's run.
That reading order checklist in Unicron 1 says otherwise
Posted by Randomhero on July 24th, 2018 @ 12:48pm CDT
william-james88 wrote:Randomhero wrote:The grand architect has been around for at least 500 years because he was hiring black smiths around the galaxy.
Au ****, I know who it is then, it's Shockwave. Like that it ties into the Unicron story.
Does anyone here think Lost Light will still be able to be enjoyed as its own title for the next months or do we have to pick up Unicron and Optimus Prime for things to make sense going forward?
This isn’t part of Unicron. This is James story he created year and years ago. Like I mentioned over the weekend John barber did an interview with Moonbase 2 and John revealed that they both were planning on ending their series coincidently at the same time. John called James and told “I think Im at good spot to conclude my run in about a year” and James said he was planning out Lost alight and figured he had a little over a year left too and would wrap up the series and take time away.
Also Shockwave wasnt running around 500 years ago. He was in deep stasis on earth under a volcano and I wouldn’t put money it’s the other Shockwave since he’s been busy staying away from cybertronian for the most part as onyx prime.
Like I said this is James story he wrote from the beginning. He admitted that while changes here and there have happened this is the conclusion he created 7 years ago and unicron was not something they were planning till last year.
Posted by Randomhero on July 24th, 2018 @ 12:55pm CDT
william-james88 wrote:Deadput wrote:Also I'm pretty sure it was said the Lost Light wasn't going to be involved with Unicron in any way during it's run.
That reading order checklist in Unicron 1 says otherwise
That check list is just a check list to the end of the runs and promote them going bi weekly
Posted by william-james88 on July 24th, 2018 @ 1:31pm CDT
Randomhero wrote:william-james88 wrote:Deadput wrote:Also I'm pretty sure it was said the Lost Light wasn't going to be involved with Unicron in any way during it's run.
That reading order checklist in Unicron 1 says otherwise
That check list is just a check list to the end of the runs and promote them going bi weekly
Ok thaks, it really confused me (as you can see)
Posted by TF-fan kev777 on July 24th, 2018 @ 2:21pm CDT
Posted by Randomhero on July 24th, 2018 @ 2:31pm CDT
Deadput wrote:william-james88 wrote:Randomhero wrote:The grand architect has been around for at least 500 years because he was hiring black smiths around the galaxy.
Au ****, I know who it is then, it's Shockwave. Like that it ties into the Unicron story.
Does anyone here think Lost Light will still be able to be enjoyed as its own title for the next months or do we have to pick up Unicron and Optimus Prime for things to make sense going forward?
The fact that he's been pretty busy in Op tells me I don't think it's him I'm sure Roberts is keeping his stuff seperate from the rest of Idw.
I feel like it's Quintisons involved but not necessarily the grand architect themselves.
Also I'm pretty sure it was said the Lost Light wasn't going to be involved with Unicron in any way during it's run.
James has not been part of any of the interviews that are dealing with the big finale with unicron. The only thing he’s got is I think creative input. He and Scott do get thanks for creative insight in the credits.
Posted by AlphaBass on July 24th, 2018 @ 2:32pm CDT
Posted by Randomhero on July 24th, 2018 @ 3:14pm CDT
AlphaBass wrote:Why couldn't it be Shockwave? Isn't LL running 3 weeks behind OP, given what happened on DoTL?
Optimus Prime is now like a year and half after #50 of TF. Lost Light is like what? Maybe a month or two? Just shut your brain off with trying to figure out if these two comics intersect.
That’s always been a problem since day one. Rid spanned maybe three months until dark Cybertron while MTMTE had the balls to say from issue one to dark Cybertron spanned 18 months.
RID #7-23 is like 2 days. Ironhide and the dinobots leave at dawn and literally return the next night with surperion to battle the Decepticons. That series was so condensed while MTMTE would jump months between issues.
Posted by AlphaBass on July 24th, 2018 @ 3:42pm CDT
Elder Gods give me MK flashbacks. And let's not even consider Springer.
Posted by Va'al on July 24th, 2018 @ 3:51pm CDT
Posted by Ms. Trebuchette on July 24th, 2018 @ 4:23pm CDT
Va'al wrote:GUYS GUYS I FIGURED IT OUT: all the answers are in Heart of Darkness.
Not....sure...if....you're....serious...or....not....
Also, I've started wondering if it's Thunderwing (Thunderwing was a pretender as a toy, and we never see Thunderwing "conscious" again after he covered himself with his pretender shell in Stormbringer.)
Other, other answer is 5 time-displaced Shockwaves in a costume together cosplaying as a Quintesson!
Posted by Randomhero on July 24th, 2018 @ 4:27pm CDT
Posted by Va'al on July 24th, 2018 @ 4:27pm CDT
Ms. Trebuchette wrote:Va'al wrote:GUYS GUYS I FIGURED IT OUT: all the answers are in Heart of Darkness.
Not....sure...if....you're....serious...or....not....
Also, I've started wondering if it's Thunderwing (Thunderwing was a pretender as a toy, and we never see Thunderwing "conscious" again after he covered himself with his pretender shell in Stormbringer.)
Other, other answer is 5 time-displaced Shockwaves in a costume together cosplaying as a Quintesson!
Given that I have read this issue last Friday, I can assure you I am totally mcgoatilly serious.
Posted by Ms. Trebuchette on July 24th, 2018 @ 4:44pm CDT
Va'al wrote:Ms. Trebuchette wrote:Va'al wrote:GUYS GUYS I FIGURED IT OUT: all the answers are in Heart of Darkness.
Not....sure...if....you're....serious...or....not....
Also, I've started wondering if it's Thunderwing (Thunderwing was a pretender as a toy, and we never see Thunderwing "conscious" again after he covered himself with his pretender shell in Stormbringer.)
Other, other answer is 5 time-displaced Shockwaves in a costume together cosplaying as a Quintesson!
Given that I have read this issue last Friday, I can assure you I am totally mcgoatilly serious.
Ya know, if John actually sends me that OTHER thing he once said he would send me, I'm going to spend a month trolling you and Scotty about knowing things that you don't.
Posted by Autobot N on July 24th, 2018 @ 5:45pm CDT
It's obviously ThinkboxVa'al wrote:Given that I have read this issue last Friday, I can assure you I am totally mcgoatilly serious.
Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on July 24th, 2018 @ 6:20pm CDT
I'm still torn on the Grand Architect and his story, and by the looks of it from the solicitations, we won't see his true form until 25 no matter what.
I'm saying it's a Quintesson, finally making their long awaited appearance after being teased by Wheelie back oh how many years ago now, and that same art showing up in Unicron's innards?
Posted by ZeroWolf on July 24th, 2018 @ 7:04pm CDT
Posted by Randomhero on July 24th, 2018 @ 7:04pm CDT
D-Maximal_Primal wrote:This discussion is awesome! Lots of cool stuff here.
I'm still torn on the Grand Architect and his story, and by the looks of it from the solicitations, we won't see his true form until 25 no matter what.
I'm saying it's a Quintesson, finally making their long awaited appearance after being teased by Wheelie back oh how many years ago now, and that same art showing up in Unicron's innards?
They’ve shown up. Was the main villain in the flint dille trilogy.
Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on July 24th, 2018 @ 7:09pm CDT
Randomhero wrote:D-Maximal_Primal wrote:This discussion is awesome! Lots of cool stuff here.
I'm still torn on the Grand Architect and his story, and by the looks of it from the solicitations, we won't see his true form until 25 no matter what.
I'm saying it's a Quintesson, finally making their long awaited appearance after being teased by Wheelie back oh how many years ago now, and that same art showing up in Unicron's innards?
They’ve shown up. Was the main villain in the flint dille trilogy.
Wot
Posted by ZeroWolf on July 24th, 2018 @ 7:14pm CDT
Posted by D-Maximal_Primal on July 24th, 2018 @ 7:16pm CDT
ZeroWolf wrote:He's on about the -ity series (autocracy, monstrosity...Urm, whatever the third one was called where metroplex throws down with trypticon)
Now I remember. Still though, I'm on Quintesson at the moment
Posted by Rodimus Prime on July 25th, 2018 @ 2:42am CDT
Posted by Va'al on July 25th, 2018 @ 3:48am CDT
(Spoiler free-ish)
Synopsis
Something is coming. It cannot be stalled. It cannot be avoided. It cannot be reasoned with. As the end of everything draws near, a simple instruction rings out across the universe: prepare, confront, repel.
Some people are ready for the fight of their lives. Rodimus and the increasingly shambolic crew of the Lost Light…yeah, they’re really not. Like, at all.
Story
We reach the third chapter in this final story arc, Crucible, and some of the answers to the bigger questions (raised since some very early stages not only of Lost Light, but also More than Meets the Eye, and even early days of Phase two of IDW) start coming to the surface, without too much ambiguity to them, but still plenty to unpack. How did it all fare? Read on to get an idea!
Nothing is created from nothing. You need a beginning, a grounding, a starting point for anything else to develop, and that applies to story matter too. Nothing is entirely new, but new takes on something previously established can work well, and James Roberts has some experience in doing just that. The reception of those elements, of course, will vary, but I was pleased with the majority of what was put out.
What we interestingly, and gloriously, have in the characterisation of the cast is something of a full circle, with some development arcs coming to fruition (see Rodimus and Ultra Magnus, for example), and some true to form points in the plot advancement and pacing that lent themselves well to appreciating just how much these characters have been through since the Death of Optimus Prime at least.
I have more thoughts on two of the bigger plot points below, but give this some time to air first. The characters have always been the lynchpin for the plot to revolve around in this series, and this issue makes sure to return to that idea even while giving us some direct answers, even while hurtling towards the end, even when those answers were not what we thought we looked for.
Art
Jack Lawrence returns to cover the art side of the book after last issue, and what I was really takne by was the almost lightness, thinner lines that the issue seems to sport, as if the inking brush has gone down by a couple sizes - and you know what? The book is all the better for whatever changed: it's sleek, it's clean, it's pointed, and everything is uniquely itself (even the one possibly repeated panel), and it's what the issue needed most of all.
The accomplishment of the art, of course, is also due to Joana Lafuente's work on the colours, which wonderfully complement the panels. Her approach ends up giving us a game of light and shadows leading to the Grand Architect reveal and their ship's crew, as well as highlighting each indivually, painstakingly rendered character on the page.
The lettering brought in by Tom B Long has some excellent moments in its fontwork, but the captions are probably what you might want to pay attention to more specifically - especially with a script which comes through as surprisingly succinct and direct to the point.
In terms of covers, Lawrence and Lafuente's main version of the shocked cast is repurposed, in its uncoloured lineart as the retail incentive, so you can pick out more details there if sought after - while the series continues its creator spotlight with a Geoff Senior / Josh Burcham B variant, of a very different vision of the Lost Light crew and the Crusadercons. Check the thumbnail, and our database for more!
Thoughts
Spoilerish ahead
There are two major moments in the book. This is the closest we've ever been to the Grand Architect and the major disappearances from the series, and we do get a reveal about their identity - though whether that is final is up to debate, as the Seibertron.com Energon Pub thread is already showing. The second is a nudge closer to the 'Great Threat' against which they were preparing to confront and repel. Something that I am still mulling over, admittedly. But a minor gasp was gasped nonetheless.
With what is probably the sleekest, lightest Lawrence art in the series so far, the book is a pleasure to get lost in, and there is no actual losing oneself in the story - everything is surprisingly clear and accessible even in its self-referential universe, the editorial touches from Mariotte work in that regard, and almost the entire cast is present for what will be the final Big Bad - be they who you think they are or not, that is entirely yet to determine.
Posted by Bounti76 on July 25th, 2018 @ 5:37am CDT
I think the Grand Architect is actually just using Pharma's body, and isn't actually Pharma.
Scorponok went out too easy.
The Magnificence still confuses me.
Maybe we'll finally find out what Rung turns into.
Posted by Shockwave 8 on July 25th, 2018 @ 5:50am CDT
Posted by Ironhidensh on July 25th, 2018 @ 7:59am CDT
I don't think Megatron is the threat, I think he is there to be the salvation.
I don't buy the Pharma nonsense. Might be his body, but not him.
Also, I really thought rung was going to prove to be a firing pin or something for the planet guns.
Posted by Optimus Prime13th on July 25th, 2018 @ 8:32am CDT
Posted by Optimus Prime13th on July 25th, 2018 @ 8:34am CDT
Posted by Ironhidensh on July 25th, 2018 @ 8:59am CDT
Optimus Prime13th wrote:Double post
Well, that's that then. We have to take you out back and shoot you. Could take awhile as well, Va'al has terrible aim.
Posted by Va'al on July 25th, 2018 @ 9:04am CDT
I think.
Anyway, how bout those two returns, huh?
Posted by Ironhidensh on July 25th, 2018 @ 9:16am CDT
Va'al wrote:My aim was true, I edited the posts in time for most spoilers to be kept intact!
I think.
Anyway, how bout those two returns, huh?
like I said, I think Megatron is returning to save the day. Maybe against unicorn, maybe GA's threat. I don't think, or at least I hope, he is the threat.
Pharmacy I'm hoping is just a shell.