The Energon Pub

[MrBlack]

So, everything about #40 was awesome. Loved the Ratchet bits, loved the parts with Ten, and I'm intrigued with where Roberts is taking Megatron from here.

[Syn_13]

So, everything about #40 was awesome. Loved the Ratchet bits, loved the parts with Ten, and I'm intrigued with where Roberts is taking Megatron from here.

Thought it was a great episode. Pleased that it didn't dwell too much on Brainstorm's story, just wrapped it up nicely. I really love the bits with Ten.

Also, don't trust Getaway. He's up to something dodgy.

[MrBlack]

So, everything about #40 was awesome. Loved the Ratchet bits, loved the parts with Ten, and I'm intrigued with where Roberts is taking Megatron from here.

Thought it was a great episode. Pleased that it didn't dwell too much on Brainstorm's story, just wrapped it up nicely. I really love the bits with Ten.

Also, don't trust Getaway. He's up to something dodgy.

I don't think he's up to anything besides maybe trying to come between Tailgate and Cyclonus, either because of his own interest in Tailgate, or because he's actually a jerk.

[Ironhidensh]

I'm starting to worry about Va'al......

[Inaction]

So what do we make of the Quasimodo-esque vibe that was being put out with Ten? I mean yeah, Swerve is unquestionably mistreating him rather poorly, but I dunno if that means he's quite as on the level of straight-up abusive and manipulative as Claude Frollo. I could be reading too much into that.

[BATTLEMASTER IIC]

I just hope Ten doesn't go postal and dismember Swerve and any others who have mistreated him. It would be cool to see him become a recognized member of the Lost Light.

[Noideaforaname]

Ten!
Ten!
Ten!
I'm kinda amused that the only way to get a Ten figure is to make one yourself.


I had to go back to see that Rodimus took Magnus' little name plate. At first I thought Brainstorm somehow did it and got confused.

Kinda strange that Brainstorm would make a gun that shoots faction-color-coded lasers while secretly being a double agent... but then again he's never actually shot anyone.

Brainstorm is an ass!

So what do we make of the Quasimodo-esque vibe that was being put out with Ten? I mean yeah, Swerve is unquestionably mistreating him rather poorly, but I dunno if that means he's quite as on the level of straight-up abusive and manipulative as Claude Frollo. I could be reading too much into that.

Great, now I gotta re-read the ENTIRE series using Tony Jay's voice for Swerve.

[Nemesis Maximo]

Where's Va'al when we need him to tell us how we feel about this issue? It's not as if he does all kinds of philanthropic things and is a part-time thespian and performs language arts for schools as a side job!

Lolololololololololol but really, this was probably the most touching issue since "Little Victories."

Good issue, lot of nice set up. Gotta wonder just how far behind CW MTMTE is running?

. That's what I wanna know. Maybe...nah, that couldn't...could it? Nah...

Damned time travel hijinxes. That's all I'm gonna say until somebody brings it up again.

[BATTLEMASTER IIC]

With Ratchet off to find drift and First Aid making a contribution to the Combiner Wars, I wouldn't be surprised if Megatron becomes temporary Chief Medical Officer (he did express interest in becoming a medic before the war after all).

[Va'al]

I'm starting to worry about Va'al......

I'm worried about myself too.

[Va'al]

For the record, from Roberts:

Because people are asking: MTMTE #40 absolutely takes place before Empire of Stone.

Currently, *in universe*, MTMTE lags about a month behind the other IDW TF titles. Translation: First Aid isn't disappearing just yet.

[Ironhidensh]

With Ratchet off to find drift and First Aid making a contribution to the Combiner Wars, I wouldn't be surprised if Megatron becomes temporary Chief Medical Officer (he did express interest in becoming a medic before the war after all).

I would find this hilariously awesome.

[Va'al]

Ten Things We Love About You
(Spoiler free-ish)

Synopsis
Having saved the universe—kind of—the Lost Light crew deal with the fallout in a manner befitting the gravity of the situation. Kind of.

..with a hearing

Story

If last issue of More Then Meets the Eye gave us a look at the inner workings of the Decepticon Justice Division, this month we get a full return to the core, and the heart, of the Lost Light and its ever evolving crew, with all the weak joints that might need fixing among its members.

So, yeah

The general backdrop for the issue is the aftermath of Brainstorm's 'adventure', in the form of the first internal affairs the trial has seen. A general backdrop, however, that leads into the focus of the story: the crew's reactions, especially chief medical officer Ratchet. Of course.

Always busy (and grumpy)

Ratchet is shown by James Roberts as a primus motor of the crew, particularly its higher officers, but also the more marginalised, unheard and unsung voices so far. He operated with tactical and surgical precision, trying to cure, fix and mend whatever relationships seem to be not working on the ship, in an attempt to mend his own failures, of a sort.

Superscraplets, a terrible blight

The relationships, though not always as savoury as they could be (Getaway, what are you doing?), are one of the other major tenets of the series, and it was a fantastic opportunity to take one issue to wrap up some of the current plots, seed some more and bring up as many emotions as possible. While also, coincidentally and casually, leading into Drift: Empire of Stone, and past stories in the IDWverse.

Art

The artist for the issue is a regular single-issue contributor - and one who deserves all the possible praise for his work here: Brendan Cahill. The characters' emotivity is wonderfully rendered in their almost organic facial expressions, body language, and interactions aboard the equally wonderful settings of the Lost Light. And giving a hand or two (ten fingers) to develop the style of one of the creative, visionary, shy Lighters.

Ten

Joana Lafuente's colours not only highlight the stellar artwork, they also keep a sense of continuity with previous Lost Light scenes and art, and adding the personal shades (from lilac rooms to corridor greys) complementing the going-ons inside both the ship and its inhabitants.

Mood lighting

And even if there is less space this time for Tom B. Long's letters to have fun, they are always there, helping scenes, dealing with Roberts' script, keeping out of the way of the artwork, making noises pointed out when necessary. In terms of covers, Cahill and Lafuente shine yet again with the Brainstorm-centric variant (thumbnail), as Alex Milne and Josh Perez take an emotional Ratchet to the fore, and Nick Roche and Burcham show a more light-hearted 2015 Tailgate in B.


Thoughts
Spoilerish ahead

If you're looking for a long look at Brainstorm's actions and their reception as a plot point, this is not the issue for you. This is an issue that digs into the raw stuff underneath all that, how the 'human', emotive responses of almost every member of the crew resonate and interact with each other, shifting the dynamics and preparing for the road to #50.

:>

And it's a touching, moving issue, with moments that wrench, twist, punch, induce smiles, grins and the potential tearing up - unashamedly so, mostly positive, but all undoubtedly powerful. It does it with the visuals, with the textual, with the story and most of all, the characters. Flawed characters, feeling characters, 'human' characters and -- wait, what did Ravage just do?

. out of

[Optimizzy]

yeah, 5 outta 5 that's what I thought too. or maybe Ten out of Ten

And man, what's Getaway's deal? It seems to go further than "Oh I like Tailgate and he's with Cyclonus" thing. I see some ulterior motive there. Like he's using Tailgate or something.

Oh and, Megatron getting that briefcase. I cant wait to see what happens with that.

[Nemesis Maximo]

Sometimes I don't loke Cahill's art, but I think that tends to be when he emulates a style that I don't care for. Here, I think he does a fantastic job; there were parts where I had trouble seeing the distinction between his and Milne's work, and others where I almost saw some Nick Roche in there. But at the same time, his powerful lines are always there to remind you who really is drawing.

For as much as I love James Raiz' art, I wish now that Cahill had drawn "Little Victories" instead, just because for such an emotionally driven issue, Cahill does a better job conveying emotion.

[prjkt]

So, it would appear that maybe Megatron is getting back to his old tricks? Or maybe he really wants to be an autobot, and will go back to change that.

The look on Megatron's face as he listen's to Rewind's reasoning for shooting his unawakened self in #38, and the staring at his Rodimus star "for giving up his evil ways" at the end that issue, added to the fact that according to UM in #40 he's hardly left his room makes me think that he's seriously considering going back and finishing what Brainstorm started. Ravage's association with stealing one of the briefcases is interesting, as it seems he's taken up Megatron's offer seriously, not just following his instructions from Soundwave...

[sabrigami]

This was a great issue. The feels were strong in this one.

Anyone else getting a Skyfall vibe from Getaway? he's so backhanded with everything he says to TG. and we all know how Skyfall turned out

[MrBlack]

This was a great issue. The feels were strong in this one.

Anyone else getting a Skyfall vibe from Getaway? he's so backhanded with everything he says to TG. and we all know how Skyfall turned out

Speaking of Skyfall, I wonder if Getaway knew anyone on Kimia. That might be his motivation for buddying up to someone close to Cyclonus.

My guess is that Getaway has some reason to want to take Cyclonus down, or at least hurt him, but he knows he can't do it directly. Murdering your crewmate is generally frowned upon, and, as Getaway himself said, he's no warrior. He is, however, a charismatic and manipulative liar; one would have to be in order to operate as a member of the "Diplomatic Corps." So, he's trying to harm Cyclonus the only way he can: by manipulating someone close to him.

[Noideaforaname]

And man, what's Getaway's deal? It seems to go further than "Oh I like Tailgate and he's with Cyclonus" thing. I see some ulterior motive there. Like he's using Tailgate or something.

I... kinda hope there's a ulterior motive, because otherwise it's INCREDIBLY creepy. Getaway's insulting poor Tailgate by using Cyclonus, he keeps giving him "alcohol" after Tailgate made it clear he's had enough, and Getaway warns Tailgate not to tell anyone. And to make matters worse Tailgate is effectively a child.

Meanwhile Ratchet's right there but doesn't step in. Fourth unsuccessful attempt...

[Randomhero]

This was a great issue. The feels were strong in this one.

Anyone else getting a Skyfall vibe from Getaway? he's so backhanded with everything he says to TG. and we all know how Skyfall turned out

Speaking of Skyfall, I wonder if Getaway knew anyone on Kimia. That might be his motivation for buddying up to someone close to Cyclonus.

My guess is that Getaway has some reason to want to take Cyclonus down, or at least hurt him, but he knows he can't do it directly. Murdering your crewmate is generally frowned upon, and, as Getaway himself said, he's no warrior. He is, however, a charismatic and manipulative liar; one would have to be in order to operate as a member of the "Diplomatic Corps." So, he's trying to harm Cyclonus the only way he can: by manipulating someone close to him.

...or he's just super creepy and likes little guys. I doubt it has anything to go with cyclonus or insane theories about ties with Kimia and what happened there. Cyclonus is just Tailgates friend and Getaway is being played the popular quarter back who turns out to be that jock who apparently doesn't know the word "no".

Never thought that this would be something in a transformers comic.

[snavej]

Hmm, Ratchet is still using big clunky telephones for some reason. Later, it will probably be DJD and crew vs. time-travelling briefcase.

[pie-man]

I wanna see more Megatron! Hard to believe that I'd be rooting for Megs, of all 'bots... that's the beauty of MTMTE, I guess.

Getaway's behavior is definetely creepy.... and it might not concern Cyclonus, but he seems to be brooding about it. Amid all the emotions & feelings, Riptide's action during the hearing was probably the funniest, in my opinion.

[Optimizzy]

I wanna see more Megatron! Hard to believe that I'd be rooting for Megs, of all 'bots... that's the beauty of MTMTE, I guess.

Getaway's behavior is definetely creepy.... and it might not concern Cyclonus, but he seems to be brooding about it. Amid all the emotions & feelings, Riptide's action during the hearing was probably the funniest, in my opinion.

Ha. Yeah. I'm wanting riptide and nautica toys so bad now.

And yeah, getaway is kinda disturbing now. I didn't really see that coming.

[MrBlack]

This was a great issue. The feels were strong in this one.

Anyone else getting a Skyfall vibe from Getaway? he's so backhanded with everything he says to TG. and we all know how Skyfall turned out

Speaking of Skyfall, I wonder if Getaway knew anyone on Kimia. That might be his motivation for buddying up to someone close to Cyclonus.

My guess is that Getaway has some reason to want to take Cyclonus down, or at least hurt him, but he knows he can't do it directly. Murdering your crewmate is generally frowned upon, and, as Getaway himself said, he's no warrior. He is, however, a charismatic and manipulative liar; one would have to be in order to operate as a member of the "Diplomatic Corps." So, he's trying to harm Cyclonus the only way he can: by manipulating someone close to him.

...or he's just super creepy and likes little guys. I doubt it has anything to go with cyclonus or insane theories about ties with Kimia and what happened there. Cyclonus is just Tailgates friend and Getaway is being played the popular quarter back who turns out to be that jock who apparently doesn't know the word "no".

Never thought that this would be something in a transformers comic.

It could just be a weird obsession, I admit. I'm just wondering if there may be more to it than that.

[SW's SilverHammer]

This was a great issue. The feels were strong in this one.

Anyone else getting a Skyfall vibe from Getaway? he's so backhanded with everything he says to TG. and we all know how Skyfall turned out

Speaking of Skyfall, I wonder if Getaway knew anyone on Kimia. That might be his motivation for buddying up to someone close to Cyclonus.

My guess is that Getaway has some reason to want to take Cyclonus down, or at least hurt him, but he knows he can't do it directly. Murdering your crewmate is generally frowned upon, and, as Getaway himself said, he's no warrior. He is, however, a charismatic and manipulative liar; one would have to be in order to operate as a member of the "Diplomatic Corps." So, he's trying to harm Cyclonus the only way he can: by manipulating someone close to him.

...or he's just super creepy and likes little guys. I doubt it has anything to go with cyclonus or insane theories about ties with Kimia and what happened there. Cyclonus is just Tailgates friend and Getaway is being played the popular quarter back who turns out to be that jock who apparently doesn't know the word "no".

Never thought that this would be something in a transformers comic.

It could just be a weird obsession, I admit. I'm just wondering if there may be more to it than that.

Wait, people are just picking up on this now? I've noticed it since #28 that he acts all kindsa creepy and pervy around tailgate, like with the awkward touching and "don't tell anyone, we'll both get in trouble" attitude.