The Old Man's Back Again
Somewhat-spoilery review for Lost Light #1. A little spoilery. Spoiler-ish.
Synopsis
Five years ago, Rodimus and a collection of traumatised, lovelorn and/or sarcastic Autobots set off on a quest to find Cyberutopia. So far, they've made a right hash of it. They've misplaced their map. They've lost their ship, the Lost Light, to a mutinous escapologist. Oh, and they're dead.Story
Well guys, it's been a painful few months with only Fort Max's Titans Return cross-sell and the Scavengers' little mini-issue to tide us over, but finally we're back! Rodimus, Megatron, Ultra Magnus, Ratchet, Drift, Nautica, some dead bodies, a legislator and a whole slew of new and returning characters! The main story! A bunch of lonely losers gallivanting around the galaxy who barely ever transform or fight but we still love for some reason!
Yes, we're finally back to the main focus after that nail-biting cliffhanger at the end of #55 from... Primus above, July. It
has been a long time. As more and more details about its continuation came out with each one decidedly confusing us - why the re-branding? They're dead? Why did Rodimus get replaced with his Shattered Glass toy? Who's this new 'Anode' character, why are they partnered with Hosehead's Headmaster and what gender are they? - we finally get all the answers.
Well, most of them.
We know Anode's a girl, at least.
Talking of Anode, she takes up quite a bit of the issue; stepping into the newcomer-for-the-benefit-of-the-reader's-experience role. She's fun, obviously has a lot to her than she's letting on, and is delightfully quirky with a number of one-liners to drop here and there. Her partner, Lug - who, as noted, some might remember as being Hosehead's headmaster in the original G1 toyline and Marvel comics but bears no such role here - plays the straight man were they a comedy duo, but don't fret, they're not simply comic relief. That's as much as I'll say about them though; you'll have to read the issue for the rest. I'm such a tease. But make no mistake, after just a single issue, I'm in love with them.
That's quite a lot about Anode and her not-Headmaster companion, but there's no need to worry - the old Lost Light crew most certainly wrestle the spotlight from them soon enough.
And in a series built around them, it shouldn't surprise you to know that there's a lot of great character moments this issue. The whole gang gets their time to shine with laughs and berating and mourning their companions, but the ones who stands out in particular are Megatron and new addition Terminus; their long-standing intrigue taking center stage. In simply a few panels you really get the feeling this is going to be one of the most interesting dynamics of the book, but all the fuss over the newcomers does not come without an important homage to those lost.
The whole gauntlet of emotional expression is represented excellently partly through aid of a beautiful, elegant flow - one never feels as if one scene stops too soon or goes on longer than it should; nor does one feel the transitions are too jarring. The pacing is just as on-point as it's always been.
This issue is largely a breather and recollection of what happened before we get going again. A pit stop, if you will - but with some new faces among your usual crew of mechanics. As expected, this is very character-driven - not a whole lot moves forward in terms of plot, aside from some very spoilery stuff at the end. And I'll remind you this isn't a very spoilery review, just spoiler-
ish.
Art
If you've been following Lost Light news for the past few months, you might have heard tell of the new art duties - Alex Milne is still aboard, but his duties in the art department are now shared with newcomer Jack Lawrence. And it's this issue he makes his debut; both with the comic itself and with the main cover. How does he do?
Well, a better job than Drift. In all seriousness, he's a perfect fit. He manages to bring his own unique flare and style to the issue, yet at the same time it still has that... special feel MTMTE did. That sort of balance between simplicity and complexity that allows for fantastic variety and emotional expression; that balance that allows us to believe these are still giant space robots who turn into cars yet are fluid and human in their motions and activity. There's also one scene in particular that's... rather breathtaking, but it's also very spoilery. And since this is once again, just a spoiler-ish review, I'll simply say the page after Drift & Anode
Final Thoughts
If there's one particularly good way to sum this issue up... it's by calling it MTMTE #58. Or #59 if you count
the Scavengers' little Revolution adventure. It's the perfect continuation of MTMTE and has everything you could want in there with nothing feeling off or awkward or like someone's lost their touch; with only a new art direction perhaps being a tad distracting (though in a delightfully good way; Lawrence expertly captures the simplicity yet complexity of both design and character)... but that wonderful positive is also the issue's biggest negative - and it's something pretty important that needs to be addressed.
It's not called MTMTE #58/#59. It's called Lost Light #1.
Remember this?This is seemingly through no fault of any of the creative team; as best as I can tell it's a re-branding mandate from someone up high. But no matter the reasons why, the fact is this is an Issue #1 and hence has a responsibility to be a decent jumping-on point for new readers. And were I a new reader? I would be extremely confused. Putting a lot of the issue behind a newcomer's eyes (Anode) helps a lot, but you still feel really lost. Magnus' short explanation of the prior events is hardly enough.
And clearly the Lost Light team felt the same way because there's a massive 5-page summary of the entire MTMTE series after the main comic story. Yeah, this isn't something I mentioned in the review, but it's there and it's huge and it REALLY gives off a vibe of "we didn't want to be an issue #1 but this is here if this is your first issue". For a returning reader this is a good refresher of what happened and helps you catch up in case you forgot anything - though with one notable error; the main villain of Dark Cybertron was apparently D-void, who knew? - but for a new reader I get the feeling it'd be an overwhelming turn-off.
However... this is my only big criticism of the book. It's still the comic, story and characters we know and love (with a few new wonderful additions). It's still arguably the best Transformers comic to have ever been. It's still MTMTE. But because of that last bit, it's not something new readers should start with.
Basically? If you want to continue MTMTE, read this comic; it's wonderful and still the same comic you know and love. If you're a new reader? ... start with MTMTE #1. Then MTMTE #2. Then the rest of the series. If you start here, it's going to be just a little confusing and overwhelming.
Final Score:
