Scadventures
(Spoiler free-ish)
(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.
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out of
out of
