Lost Light discussion

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Post by electro girl »

I've been avoiding discussion on this as my copy just arrived today. I can live with the art but everything else was pretty meh, I wanted more Getaway stuff. If anyone needs me I'll be building a teleporter den and drawing some Drift/Rodimus fan art for Tumblr.
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Post by Auntie Slag »

Love the story, the Functionist world is freaky as hell, and its only going to encourage them to worm their way into the Lost Lighters universe, unless Megatron and co can stop them. Which makes me worry that Roller and Terminus will be the red shirts in this arc!

The art is good, but it makes everyone look slightly kiddified. Style-wise if Milne was an 18-rated, then this is like a PG certificate. Hope to go they bring Milne back because his was the pen that added so much weight to Roberts serious scenes e.g. Overlord bearing down on Ratchet, Pharma slicing Ambulon etc. And why get rid of him anyway? He’s a class act.
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Lost Light #2

Post by Patapsco »

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Post by Skyquake87 »

Booo
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Post by Patapsco »

I don't care about the functionist universe, I don't care about ****ing Rung, I hate Anode, Lug and Kaput (I mean, REALLY??????), the art is abysmal and I really don't like Tailgate's characterisation any more
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Post by Selkadoom »

I kinda have to agree that throwing more and more new characters isn't a good thing. It just means more less developed chars.
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Post by Skyquake87 »

Waiting for it to turn up...then I shall cast my two penneth. Do agree that constantly introducing new characters is one of the things that frequently derailed the Marvel US book. And they at least were a less than subtle form of advertising... I don't mind odd new characters turning up here and there, but at the start of every new story arc? And if you're going to do that, why not pick up one of the hundreds of pre-existing characters...? Unless the plan is to kill 'em off...
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Post by Denyer »

I like "it's a big universe" reminders and not confining things to the few hundred original characters. Really struggle to care about alt-universe stuff, though, and have just cancelled a Panini Marvel reprints sub because it's now all reboot stuff.
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Post by Red Dave Prime »

Skyquake87 wrote:Waiting for it to turn up...then I shall cast my two penneth. Do agree that constantly introducing new characters is one of the things that frequently derailed the Marvel US book. And they at least were a less than subtle form of advertising... I don't mind odd new characters turning up here and there, but at the start of every new story arc? And if you're going to do that, why not pick up one of the hundreds of pre-existing characters...? Unless the plan is to kill 'em off...
Considering two of the main criticisms of this forum has been Roberts using the same cast over and over and when he does bring some one along he changes their character too much from the paragraph of tech specs that the toy came with, I feel he is damned if he does and damned if he dont.

Also I must be the only one who enjoys alt-universe stuff. I've enjoyed each look into it and am enjoying the current arc. Maybe its because outside of Star Trek, a bit of Buffy and maybe the x-men movies I havent seen too much alt-history arcs in what I read and watch (oh and the original heroes had that great alt-future episode)

All that said, there still is a bit of a muddled feel to this. In part down to the new characters not feeling organic enough to the setting and more like plot points. The art is not helping. Its not terrible, in fact sometimes its very good. But other times it reminds me too much of the overlly comic style of the windblade series (the ongoing one that didnt ongo) and that never clicked with me.

Other points - I quite like the tailgate thing but have I missed something as to who wounded cyclonus? I take it it wasn't Fangry? or was it and he let him?

Megatron bellowing orders waa nice. Thought that came across really well.

Ratchet and Religion - I get he is the skeptic but is it not fair to say that a lot of ex-rid implies that there is way more truth to the transformer religion than most real religions? There are actual artifacts that do actual things. Galvatron seemed to know the effective apostoles in the first line of primes. It seems for a smart bot like ratchet, he couldnt be that dismissive.
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Post by Skyquake87 »

Maybe its the mythology and eulogising he doesn't care for, that obscure the 'facts' or something?

I don't mind having a core cast, and rotating the cast is good, as is introducing new characters. I just think the huge cast of characters aboard the Lost Light seems a bit of a waste if we're never going to see them. I don't mind the original characters ( I do like Nautica very much) and when I'm in the thick of reading this stuff, those things are forgotten and stand and fall on their own merits, but still...I dunno, it just feels a bit unnecessary to introduce more characters when there's enough to be going on with as it is.

I'm not really getting into Kaput, Anode and whatsit... :(

As for this issue itself, the Megatron stuff was good and I liked the general pace and energy of this issue. Rewind spouting alot of expository dialogue was a litle but off-putting for me personally, but I get why this was thrown in. I quite like the Functionist Universe being explored, but at the same time, I was quite happy to leave the mystery of what Rung transforms into exactly that. I like having occasional ponderable things and its enough for me to speculate on what he is.

Did amuse me that it had bothered the Functionist council so much that they've turned this into a massive planet-wide broadcast!

As for Jack Lawrence's art - I really like it! Its cartoony, but very expressive and carries enough weight and detail for me. The designs are all well proportioned (something I constantly find off putting about the likes of Livio) and there's some good storytelling on show. Its perky, and I like it :)
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Post by Death's Head »

Ratchet and Religion - I get he is the skeptic but is it not fair to say that a lot of ex-rid implies that there is way more truth to the transformer religion than most real religions? There are actual artifacts that do actual things. Galvatron seemed to know the effective apostoles in the first line of primes. It seems for a smart bot like ratchet, he couldnt be that dismissive.
It doesn't help that the timescales are all messed up. Most of our main characters are at least 4 million years old, the length of the war - but then some of these so-called 'mythic' events like the Thirteen Primes etc only occur what, 8 million years ago? So 'only' 4 million before the era of our protagonists. And then , as you say, we've got characters running around now who hail from that era.

If you wanted to make it mythic all that business with the 13 Primes should have been much further back. But then I'm not sure how you then reconcile that with characters from that era still being alive.

Anyway, regarding the issue, I'm loving the Functionist Universe stuff. I've always loved the Functionists as a concept - they make such sense as a concept in the Transformers universe it's a wonder we never saw their like before - so a universe where they've 'won' is right up my alley. I've seen some speculation on other forums that we could be setting up for Megatron staying behind in the Functionist Universe to lead the revolution, so it'll be very interesting to see how this all plays out. Plus, this being James, a man of meticulous plotting, I have no doubt it will tie in somehow to what's happening on Necroworld *and* the Lost Light.
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Post by Auntie Slag »

This was awesome! It felt nice and dense, like an issue from Shadowplay. I’m really enjoying Anode and Lug and there must be a purpose to them other than simply introducing new non-toy characters. I was very intrigued by Kaput showing up, but then flipped back a few pages and saw his name on the ‘In honour of the disappeared’ list. So he must be one of those who emerged from the CR chambers, surely Ratchet and perhaps Rung would have been dying to see him again. I think the last time Kaput appeared in a comic was Spotlight: Orion Pax?

It was pretty awesome seeing Roller punch alt-universe Dominus Ambus’ head off, again the big tombstone list in the Lost Light universe has Dominus at the very bottom, does that mean he is going to be one of the people that Sweve will find when he goes to investigate the unopened CR chambers? And if he is there, will he be gutted to find Rewind is now stuck in al alternative universe, and if Rewind does return, will it be when Our Lost Light Rewind returns? One for Chromedome and one for Dominus? who will go with who?

The art is pretty cool now, getting used to it, as long as he doesn’t veer away from Milne’s style the longer he’s there. I’d still really dig a Super-Load bearing Milne comeback though.

I love the Functionist universe, and it does make sense in an entirely brutal way. I was getting worried turning the pages in this issue to find Roller or Terminus getting killed in nasty ways. They still feel like the Redshirts of this away team.

And (re: the solicit for Issue 3) I wonder if Killmaster is in one of the CR Chambers? Who else would want to beat Whirl to death so severely?
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Post by Red Dave Prime »

Did i miss something? Dominus was the pet wasnt he?
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Post by Auntie Slag »

Yes, you’re right. I totally forgot that! My brain just leapt to the conclusion that everybody on the list had been retrieved by the Necrobot and placed in the chambers. Does that mean Lug and Anode should be on that big tombstone as well?
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Post by inflatable dalek »

Late to this as I was badly ill when it came out and haven't had a chance to sit down and write about it before...

Really enjoying the main plot because, as I mentioned last month, I really love well done parallel universe stuff. And this is well done. Mainly because it can avoid the worst excesses of when TV does it, mainly bored actors so you get lazy leather pants wearing hammy "EVIL" versions of the regulars that have nothing to say.

Good parallel Universe stuff (the original Trek and DS9 versions of the Mirror Universe, Inferno) does have that extra layers of depth though. And the idea of the functionist Universe feeds into enough of MTMTE/LL's themes about identity to feel like more than just a romp.

Not that it can't enjoy the tropes of course, so we get the Resistance (though again, it avoids the laziness of having any of our guys on it) and the big maniacal plan. Much like Elegant Chaos is clearly James' big take on time travel this is clearly him revelling in getting to play with this type of storytelling and it flows well.

Also like how Megatron has firmly gone back to not fighting, presumably to impress Terminus, which works. I still think Terminus is going to wind up being a darker character than anyone thinks...

Oh, and Slag was right about Rung all along.

wasn't entirely sure about the Necroworld stuff. I've enough faith in Roberts to know it will almost certainly all tie together in the end, but at the moment I've not got a very good handle on where the Tailgate and Anode stuff is going.

There were also a couple of things that seemed to come out of nowhere: Drift was led to Necroworld by a vision rather than just Velocity's call? Tailgate was making his own solo killing field in Dying of the Light rather than fighting with the others (maybe that one will stand out more on a reread of that story)? Both of those felt a bit random.

But, overall this was a strong thoughtful issue that ended on an intriguing note.
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Post by Cyberstrike nTo »

Skyquake87 wrote:As for Jack Lawrence's art - I really like it! Its cartoony, but very expressive and carries enough weight and detail for me. The designs are all well proportioned (something I constantly find off putting about the likes of Livio) and there's some good storytelling on show. Its perky, and I like it :)
Having skimmed through Lost Light #1 and #2. I liked the artwork as well. It reminds of Nick Roche when he did The Last Stand of the Wreckers but only better. Roche's style on Last Stand of the Wreckers never worked for me (I thought his work on Spotlight Megatron was some of the best artwork for any IDW TF series since Guido on AHM) and that was one of the reasons why I still think it's a good book but not a great book and is IMHO still an extremely over-rated series.

Lawrence's work on Lost Light looks good and at least first issue feels like it's fits the tone of the book very well. I feel that Lawrence successfully meshes the classic G1 aesthetic with the Animated/Prime/RID aesthetic and the only artist to get me to like that was Sarah Stone on the first Windblade mini-series.
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Post by Unicron »

Been having some random thoughts about the interesting implications of the Functionist Universe being the result of a timeline where Megatron didn't come online.

Nova/Nemesis Prime, the Darkness, D-Void and the rest of the Dead Universe crew should still be hanging out over in the Benzuli Expanse, probably still waiting for conditions to be right to bring about that whole Expansion thing.

The Magnificence is probably still sitting over on Ki-Aleta, where Rodimus would know where and how to get it. Not sure what use it would be here, but it's a hell of a plot device to be sitting out in the universe somewhere. Of course, we still don't know what became of it in the Main Universe.

Until we find out otherwise, the Matrix should still be stashed down in the Undergrid, as there wouldn't have been the events that led to Orion Pax finding it. So presumably it's still down there, ready to picked up. Now would any of our crew now on Cybertron know where Prime found it? Could we see Megatron with a Matrix?

Related, since Prime never found the Matrix, Metroplex should still be chilling beneath Nyon.
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Lost Light discussion

Post by inflatable dalek »

Quick scattershot post as I have to go to work...


Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa see! The Geo Bomb wasn't a dud. It was a plot point perfectly well set up. Vindication. Indeed, I'm going to go as far as to say it worked better than Brainstorm thinks...




What impressed me about the A plot here is that there's a really nice sense of unease and tension building up and it's being achieved mostly through characters talking. Which should be bad drama (telling not showing) but it works very well here. The Functionist Universe feels nasty and whatever Rung does has a sense of doom to it and we're all heading towards doom.

Nice touch with it being Megs taking an interest in the mutilated little guys as well whilst everyone talks stratergy. I've seen a theory he'll stay behind at the end to fight the good fight on a whole new playing field and that actually would be a perfect (albeit not permanent) send off for him.

And one parallel Universe cliché avoided: We get a direct counterpart to one of the regulars at last (Rung doesn't count as Functionalist Rung is a McGuffin, not a character yet) and they're not a beard wearing evil bastard but basically the same.

Speaking of Anode, her backstory was more nice world building. Not sure if they're really going down the Sixth Sense route with Lug as it seems very heavily signposted here and would basically be the same as Bumblebee. I suspect the Double Bluff.

Speaking of which, the Killmaster scene really took my bu surprise, mainly through deciding if the book would really kill of Swerve and Ten in a comedy subplot.

Then I remembered (though I did have to double check) the Geo Bomb was based on tech Killmaster invented. So presumably shunting things into another Universe to get rid of them was always the intent and his wand is both a smaller version of the same and the way they'll get home.

Though if Swerve and Ten have just been sent back to their own Universe that'll give the old Fake Out Death thing another spin and very much annoy the people who get Annoyed. So maybe it's a double bluff and they really have been shunted off in a comedy subplot?

Love Brainstorm and Nightbeat. Which felt very Elegant Chaos actually.

And amidst all the generally lighter tone of the Necroworld bits, the idea everyone is on anti-depressants with potentially worrying side effects was a nice little nod at the long terms effects of this life style.

Still not sure how the Cyclonus and Tailgate stuff will tie in to anything.

All in all, another really strong issue. Would like to see Jack Lawrence get a real chance to show off now his feet are comfortably under the table though. The Killmaster sequence was almost it, but the second Ten dies you get pulled out of paying attention to the art and wonder about the consequences. Other than that the only major action scene he's had was at the start of issue one. The talking around tables stuff is fantastic drama, but it doesn't give the artist chance for a signature Big Impact moment.

Oh, and if the new Transformers in the FU are all bred for war, that means the implication is the Armada Trilogy characters are super bad ass as most of the not known in our timeline faces have been based on them...
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Post by Blitzwing »

I like the idea of Megatron staying behind in the Functionist Universe, but if he did, I would need to see an Ongoing about it, which I doubt will happen given how many ongoings are already running. Leaving him behind as a send off would just lead to too many questions about his eventual return and possible return to villainy.

I'm very doubtful that Ten and Swerve are gone. I also wasn't very pleased that the narrative essentially called Ten an inanimate object. Hopefully whatever twist happens with Killmaster's wand has the two of them safe and sound. At this point, I don't consider a Transformer death an actual death until we see a sparkless body, and even then they are subject to revival.

The Functionist Universe itself has been pretty great, a lot of great allegories to real-life Earth history but still unique enough to fit into the Cybertronian story. This kind of stuff is where Roberts shines the most.
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Post by inflatable dalek »

One thought I had when discussing it with my Podcast Maximus pals: Orion Pax is somewhere out there in this timeline as well...

I took "inanimate" to just mean "Standing still", especially as it took Swerve as well.
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