MediaWiki - User contributions [en]

The Headmasters issue 7

2020-08-19T05:15:42Z

Stryyder:

{{Comicstory|
|seriesissue=[[Transformers: The Headmasters (manga)|''Transformers: The Headmasters'']] #7
|prev=The Headmasters issue 6
|next=The Headmasters issue 8
|title=
|image=HeadmastersMangaIssue7Cover.jpg
|caption=
|publisher=[[Kodansha]]
|published in=''[[TV Magazine]]''
|date=February 1988
|writer=[[Masumi Kaneda]]
|penciler=[[Ban Magami]]
|continuity=[[Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity]]
}}

'''As a raging inferno blazes through Shinjuku, only Ricochet and Artfire can save the day!'''

==Synopsis==
It's New Year's Day and [[Tokyo]]'s [[Shinjuku]] district is on fire. [[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel]], [[Chromedome (G1)|Chromedome]], [[Artfire]], [[Ricochet (Headmasters)|Ricochet]], [[Nightstick (Headmasters)|Nightstick]] and [[Nebulon (Headmasters)|Nebulon]] arrive on the scene and get to work rescuing trapped civilians and trying desperately to quench the blaze.

Just as they get started, though, the [[Decepticon]] [[Targetmaster (technology)|Targetmaster]]s ([[Slugslinger (G1)|Slugslinger]], [[Triggerhappy (G1)|Triggerhappy]] and [[Misfire (G1)|Misfire]]), presumably the culprits behind the inferno, attack from the sky.

Things look bad until [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Battleship Maximus]] shows up and dumps thousands of gallons of water onto the fire, extinguishing the blaze.

With their primary concern now out of the way, Ricochet and Artfire "Target On" with Nebulon and Nightstick while Chrome does a "Head On" with his [[transtector]] to become Chromedome again. All three [[Autobot]]s combine their firepower into the "Final Strike! Master Tactic Head-Target Cannon".

The blast sends the Decepticons into retreat, leaving the Autobots to tell Daniel he did a good job for some reason.

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
* [[Chromedome (G1)|Chromedome]] (2)
* [[Ricochet (Headmasters)|Ricochet]] (3)
* [[Artfire]] (4)
* [[Nebulon (Headmasters)|Nebulon]] (5)
* [[Nightstick (Headmasters)|Nightstick]] (6)
* [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress]] (13)
* [[Brainstorm (G1)|Brainstorm]] (14)
* [[Hardhead (G1)|Hardhead]] (15)
* [[Highbrow (G1)|Highbrow]] (16)
|c2=
* [[Slugslinger (G1)|Slugslinger]] (7)
* [[Misfire (G1)|Misfire]] (8)
* [[Triggerhappy (G1)|Triggerhappy]] (9)
* [[Caliburst (G1)|Caliburst]] (10)
* [[Aimless (G1)|Aimless]] (11)
* [[Blowpipe (G1)|Blowpipe]] (12)
|c3=
* [[Daniel Witwicky (G1)|Daniel Witwicky]] (1)
}}

==Notes==
*The [[Targetmaster (technology)|Targetmaster]]s were created during a once-in-a-lifetime fluke in "[[Miraculous Warriors, Targetmasters (Part 1)]]", where neither [[Ricochet (Headmasters)|Ricochet]], [[Artfire]] or their Targetmaster sidekicks were present. This continuity glitch was partly amended some years later via Ricochet's [[e-HOBBY]] bio, explaining how he became a Targetmaster. Artfire's origin has yet to be revealed. Even with this explanation, however, unlike most other issues of ''The Headmasters'', there's really no place in the animated series that this adventure can neatly be slotted into.

*While the Targetmaster partners seen in the [[Transformers: The Headmasters (cartoon)|''The Headmasters'' cartoon]] all spoke in a language of ''boops'' and ''beeps'', both [[Nightstick (Headmasters)|Nightstick]] and [[Nebulon (Headmasters)|Nebulon]] speak everybody else's language to the point of being chatterboxes.

===Errors===
*In the 2020 English reprint by Viz Media, both Nebulon and Nightstick are marked as “Master Warrior Nightstick” in their first appearance chyrons.

===Reprints===
*2002 — ''[[Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers: The Comics]]''
*2020 — ''[[Transformers: The Manga Volume 2]]''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Headmasters issue 7}}
[[Category:The Headmasters issues]]

You, Me, and the Universe

2020-06-24T06:05:45Z

Stryyder:

{{Comicstory
|series=exrid|issueno=41
|seriesissue2=[[Combiner Wars (comic)|Combiner Wars]] Part 4
|prev=The Possible Light
|prev2=Mistakes and Mayhem
|next=Now and On Earth
|next2=All That Remains
|caption="I can't ''hear'' you!"
|image=TF41 regcvr.jpg
|title="You, Me, and the Universe"
|publisher=[[IDW Publishing]]
|date=[[May 20]], [[2015]]
|coverdate=May 2015
|story by=[[Mairghread Scott]] and [[John Barber]]
|written by=[[John Barber]]
|art by=[[Livio Ramondelli]]
|letters by=[[Tom B. Long]]
|editor=[[Carlos Guzman]]
|continuity=[[2005 IDW continuity|IDW continuity]]
|chronology=[[IDW timeline|Current era]]
}}

'''Everything seems to be coming up Starscream until Prowl's contingency plan goes into action, and the most incredible combiner of all is born!'''

==Synopsis==
[[Optimus Prime (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Optimus Prime]] visits the imprisoned [[Prowl (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Prowl]] to talk over recent events, attempting to explain that he and [[Windblade (G1)|Windblade]] are putting a system in place to curb [[Starscream (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Starscream]]'s ambition. Prowl is unconvinced, and begins drawing pictures of the [[combiner]]s on his cell forcefield with his fingertip to illustrate his point: all the other prisoners Starscream has taken—specifically, the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]]—have been hidden away somewhere, and Prowl is certain this means Starscream is going to attempt to recruit [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] to his side, since he knows that [[Superion (G1)|Superion]] and [[Defensor (G1)|Defensor]] are sure to stand with Prime when the turning point comes. Prowl insists that he has always been the one to make the tough calls Optimus couldn't, but Optimus believes Prowl has been twisted by a list of numerous betrayals he feels he has suffered in his life; Prowl retorts that Optimus can add himself to that list.

After stationing Superion and Defensor on [[Caminus (planet)|Caminus]], and happily taking in the sight of Cybertronians and Camiens working together, Starscream returns to Cybertron through the [[space bridge]]. He urges [[Wheeljack (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Wheeljack]] to use the bridge to make contact with the other colony worlds as quickly as possible, but Wheeljack requires Windblade's help to communicate with [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]], and she is busy with her duties as representative. After promising to speak to her, Starscream heads off to his secret prison with [[Scoop (G1)|Scoop]] and [[Rattrap (BW)|Rattrap]], where he makes the incarcerated Constructicons an offer...

At [[Maccadam's Old Oil House]], [[Mirage (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Mirage]] and [[Ironhide (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Ironhide]] talk about their visions, and realize that they were seeing the same thing. Though they laugh it off, and make peace with each other over past misunderstandings, [[Sunstreaker (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Sunstreaker]] cuts in, offering an insight afforded him by his time as a [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmaster]]: what if, rather than seeing a "vision", Mirage and Ironhide were somehow sharing "mindspace", like Sunstreaker did with [[Hunter O'Nion]], seeing into someone else's mind and witnessing their intentions for the future. Ironhide considers it plausible, and they decide to take the news to Optimus.

While Windblade helps Wheeljack, and together they grimly mull over what contacting the colonies will mean, Starscream uses the [[Enigma of Combination]] to merge Scoop with the Constructicons, using Scoop's dedication to his "chosen one" to influence the combined mind of Devastator and make the giant loyal to him. Starscream turns to Rattrap to gloat, only to find that Rattrap is not there... and has, in fact, sneaked back to the prison, where he kills a guard and frees Swindle, requesting that he set up a "distraction" for him. Swindle is happy to comply, liberating the Stunticons so they can combine into [[Menasor (G1)|Menasor]] once more, then rounding up a handful of other Decepticons and leading both them and the combiner in an attack on the space bridge chamber, with the false claim that "a better life" awaits them on Caminus. Amid the chaos, Rattrap steals the Enigma of Combination and brings it to Prowl's cell, just as Ironhide, Mirage, and Sunstreaker arrive to tell Prime what they have deduced. Prime tries to stop the rat, but it is too late: at Prowl's command, Rattrap activates the Enigma...

As Menasor heads through the portal to Caminus, Devastator tackles him, and both fall through. Defensor, remembering Devastator's recent rampage, unthinkingly attacks the Constructicon combiner, and Superion soon joins the fray for a four-way free-for-all combiner throwdown. Meanwhile, in the space bridge chamber, a stray laser blast from Swindle destroys the bridge control panel and destabilizes the portal... so when Menasor and Superion fall through it while they are grappling, they wind up on an entirely different, unknown, [[Mystery colony planet|alien planet]]! Devastator hurls Defensor through after them, then joins them on this new world, instructing them all to calm down—and that he'll calm them down ''permanently'' if they don't get with the program. Then, a new voice echoes out of the portal, and a fifth giant figure enters the combat: thanks to the Enigma, Optimus Prime, Prowl, Sunstreaker, Ironhide, and Mirage have been [[Optimus Maximus (G1)|merged into a combiner]] too!

==Featured characters==
{{Featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Optimus Prime]] (1)
*[[Prowl (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Prowl]] (2)
*[[Superion (G1)|Superion]] (3)
*[[Defensor (G1)|Defensor]] (4)
*[[Chromia (G1)|Chromia]] (5)
*[[Windblade (G1)|Windblade]] (9)
*[[Wheeljack (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Wheeljack]] (14)
*[[Ironhide (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Ironhide]] (22)
*[[Mirage (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Mirage]] (23)
*[[Sunstreaker (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Sunstreaker]] (24)
*[[Optimus Maximus (G1)|Optimus Maximus]] (34)

|c2=
*[[Waspinator (BW)|Waspinator]] (11)
*[[Sparkstalker]] (12)
*[[Menasor (G1)|Menasor]] (29)
*[[Mindwipe (G1)|Mindwipe]] (30)
*[[Sinnertwin (G1)|Sinnertwin]] (31)
*[[Weirdwolf (G1)|Weirdwolf]] (32)
*[[Blast Off (G1)|Blast Off]] (33)

|c4=
{{{!}}border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="background:transparent"
{{!}}-
{{!}}style="background:transparent; border-right: 0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*"[[Red Leader (Caminus)|Red Leader]]" (6)
*[[Strafe (IDW)|Strafe]] (7)
*[[Rattrap (BW)|Rattrap]] (8)
*[[Starscream (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Starscream]] (10)
*[[Scoop (G1)|Scoop]] (13)
*[[Sandstorm (G1)|Sandstorm]] (15)
*[[Long Haul (G1)|Long Haul]] (16)
*[[Hook (G1)|Hook]] (17)
*[[Mixmaster (G1)|Mixmaster]] (18)
*[[Scavenger (G1)|Scavenger]] (19)
*[[Bonecrusher (G1)|Bonecrusher]] (20)
{{!}}style="background:transparent; border-right: 0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Blurr (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Blurr]] (21)
*[[Bob (IDW)|Bob]] (25)
*[[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] (26)
*A [[Badgeless]] (27)
*[[Swindle (G1)|Swindle]] (28)
{{!}}}
}}

==Quotes==
'''Wheeljack:''' "'''Welcome back to Cybertron!''' Things went okay, Starscream?" 
'''Starscream:''' "We did our best to represent our '''homeland''' as we '''expand''' our partnership." 
'''Chromia:''' "'''I''' just wanted to make sure nobody started shooting." 
'''Starscream:''' "Ha ha, '''delightful''', Chromia. Yes. Good idea."

"I need somebody I can '''trust'''. Somebody who'll '''stick with me'''." 
"And that's '''me?''' I don't even '''like''' you." 
"Who does?"
:—'''Starscream''' and '''Scoop'''

"I '''thought''' I understood you. I thought you were you... an '''open wound'''." 
"What?" 
"You'd been '''hurt''' so much. Your '''functionist''' upbringing. A never-ending series of '''betrayals'''...or what you '''see''' as personal betrayals, anyway. The Senate, Zeta, Megatron, the Neutrals, the Wreckers, Arcee, Chromedome... '''Spike'''. 
"Is that all?" 
"Did I '''forget''' someone?" 
"My history of betrayals proves one thing: '''Cybertronians cannot be trusted.''' The power Starscream has... the '''spacebridge''', the '''enigma'''... you '''have''' to see it. And '''you''' can stop it. You're the '''one true Prime''' to the colony worlds. They'll believe '''anything''' you tell them. Did your '''list''' leave off somebody that '''betrayed''' me? '''Yeah,''' Prime. It '''did.'''"
:—'''Optimus Prime''' and '''Prowl'''

"'''Green''' is the new '''orange'''."
:—'''Starscream''' on Scoop's addition to Devastator

==Notes==
===Continuity notes===
*Prowl makes the ''"PFFT"'' sound during his conversation with Prime, a "talent" his ex-partner [[Chromedome (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Chromedome]] long coveted and finally learned how to do in [[Little Victories|''More than Meets the Eye'' #22]].
*Scoop wants to know what a particular prisoner is guilty of; the prisoner doesn't get called out by name, but it's [[Sandstorm (G1)|Sandstorm]], who—as Starscream so delicately puts it—"killed a bunch of people" in the [[The Transformers: Punishment|''Punishment'' mini-series]].
*Ironhide apologizes for trying to kill Mirage, an event that took place in [[All Hail Megatron issue 7|''All Hail Megatron'' #7]], when Ironhide mistakenly believed Mirage was the traitor who had sold the Autobots out (as Sunstreaker points out in the next panel, he was actually the one responsible). Ironhide notes that he had to "remember" that he did this, as it was a memory he had lost following his death and resurrection in the [[The Transformers: Ironhide|''Ironhide'' mini-series]], which is something that hasn't really come up much in the present era. Interestingly, the idea was supposed to be that Ironhide didn't have those memories because he had been "reborn" from an outdated copy of his data that those memories were simply not ''part'' of, so how he could have regained them is a big question.
*Sunstreaker mentions [[Outlier (group)|outliers]], the IDW description of the phenomenon of Transformers with "super-powers", introduced in [[Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|''More than Meets the Eye'' #10]].
*When describing the "tough calls" he's made, Prowl mentions "figuring out how to make a [[Phase Sixer]]" (a plot seen in [[Remembrance Day|''More than Meets the Eye'' #14]] that had dire repercussions for that book) and "taking care of [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]]'s secret weaponry" (from [[Endgame|''Autocracy'' #12]]).
*Optimus Prime refers to Prowl's Functionist upbringing, which we know from [[Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|''More than Meets the Eye'' #9]] was in the town of [[Petrex]].
*Prowl's list of betrayals includes: the [[Senate]] (for whom Prowl worked circa ''[[The Transformers: Megatron Origin|Megatron Origin]]''), Zeta Prime (who went nuts in ''[[The Transformers: Autocracy|Autocracy]]'', forcing Prowl and the Autobots to stand against him), Megatron (who allied with the Autobots against Zeta then betrayed them in [[Overthrown|''Autocracy'' #8]]), the [[NAIL|neutrals]] (Prowl was originally a neutral himself, as we learned in ''[[Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime]]'', and came to hate them for running away from the war), the [[Wrecker]]s (team leader [[Impactor (G1)|Impactor]] went against Prowl's express orders and executed [[Squadron X]] in [[Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|''Last Stand of the Wreckers'' #5]], and he's had multiple issues with his successor [[Springer (G1)|Springer]]), [[Arcee (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Arcee]] (Prowl and Arcee's alliance and falling out has been gradually happening over the course of this series), [[Chromedome (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Chromedome]] (Prowl's former lover, with whom he broke up when he refused to join the Senate's security forces with him according to [[Elegant Chaos Part 1: All Our Parlous Yesterdays|''More than Meets the Eye'' #36]]; Chromedome also [[shadowplay]]ed Prowl in #14 of that book, which had far-reaching consequences), and of course, [[Spike Witwicky (G1)/2005 IDW continuity|Spike Witwicky]], who needs no explanation at this point. Phew!
*With Scoop's addition to Devastator, Hook regains his position as the combiner's head-and-shoulders. Scoop takes the deceased [[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]]'s place as right leg, which Hook has been filling in for since [[Before the Dawn|issue #14]].
*The planet that the combiners land on has what appear to be members of [[Garnak]]'s species.

===Transformers references===
*When Sparkstalker grumbles that Starscream is "prancing around like the king of the universe," Waspinator replies: "Wazzpinator ''hatezz'' univerzz"—an inversion of his classic lament, "Why univerzze hate Wazzpinator?", from the ''[[Beast Wars: Transformers (cartoon)|Beast Wars]]'' episode, "[[Deep Metal]]".
*Blast Off is among the crowd of Decepticons who Swindle frees, having shed the [[Transformers: Fall of Cybertron|''Fall of Cybertron'']] design he had last time we saw him in [[City on Fire|issue #12]] and taken on his original Generation 1 body. Specifically, it's the interpretation of his Generation 1 form that appeared in [[Dreamwave Productions|Dreamwave]]'s [[Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|''More than Meets the Eye'' profile series]], which features his shuttle-windows on his upper arms, and which we use as his article's main picture here on TFWiki.
*It's combinin' time! Optimus Prime's combined form doesn't get a name this issue, but next issue will reveal that it is "Optimus Maximus". However, see "Errors", below.
*Devastator's makeover returns him to a more classic configuration for the first time since he became "Prowlastator" in [[Before the Dawn|issue #14]], to tie in with his new ''Combiner Wars'' toy. Unlike other combiners featured in this event, however, he is not drawn to the specifications of his new toy, instead retaining his design that debuted in [[Earthfall Part 2: Detonation Boulevard|issue #29]], with his new Scoop-leg and Hook-upper-torso being the only updated parts.

===Errors===
[[File:YouMeAndTheUniverse-Scoopcolors.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Comixology version left, print version right]]
*Scoop does not recognize the secret prison, and has to have Starscream explain to him what it is—except he's been there before, back in [[The Possible Light|Chapter 2]], and was left with no misunderstanding of what the facility was. This is sort-of corrected for the trade; rather than ask ''what'' the prison is, he asks why he's been brought there. He haltingly refers to it as "this place", unwilling to call it what it is, which leads in to Rattrap and Starscream's unchanged dialogue, which now plays as a "correction" of Scoop's remark.
*On page 6, Optimus expresses concern over Superion not returning to its "normal" form after combining, even though the Aerialbots broke down into their component parts [[Mistakes and Mayhem|just last issue]].
*On page 8, "[[Maccadam]]" is misspelled "Macaddam". This is corrected for the trade.
*In the digital version of the book, Scoop's color as Devastator's leg remains orange while in the print version Scoop-as-leg has been corrected to being green. The edit is retained in the collected version, although Scoop is (possibly intentionally) a slightly different shade of green than the rest of Devastator.
*On page 16, Superion’s exclamation “Hurm.” Is colored in Defensor’s blue speech bubble instead of his own orange.
*On page 17, Starscream asks [[Blackjack]] if he can "diffuse" the Menasor situation, when he almost certainly means "defuse".
*Optimus Maximus's torso is colored in the standard red-and-blue Optimus coloration of [[Ultra Prime]], rather than in the redecoed color scheme of the (then-unreleased) Maximus toy. The next chapter will make a move to partially correct this. What it can't correct, unfortunately, is the fact that Maximus's limbs have clearly been drawn without reference to the (also then-unreleased) ''Combiner Wars'' Ironhide, Prowl, Sunstreaker, or Mirage toys—Ironhide and Mirage ''try'' to look like leg-shaped lumps, but rather than reimagine Sunstreaker and Prowl as arms, the art simply gives Optimus one of each of the two characters' ''actual'' arms.

{{--}}

===Covers (5)===
*'''Regular cover:''' Starscream looking pleased with himself as Superion and Menasor go at it in the background, by [[Casey Coller]] and [[Joana Lafuente]]
*'''Subscription cover:''' One half of Optimus Maximus, with Menasor and Devastator behind him, by [[Livio Ramondelli]]; connects to the subscription cover of ''Windblade'' #3 to form a complete image
*'''Retailer incentive cover:''' Optimus Prime by [[Marcelo Matere]], "courtesy of [[Hasbro]]"
*'''Hasbro Pulse exclusive cover:''' A recreation of the regular cover to [[The Sum and Its Parts|''Windblade'' #1]] using the ''[[Transformers: Generations|Generations]]'' Windblade and ''Combiner Wars'' Superion toys, available exclusively from [[Hasbro Pulse]].
*'''Hasbro exclusive cover:''' Artwork of [[Hound (G1)/toys#CombinerWars|Hound]], based on his ''[[Transformers: Generations|Generations]] [[Combiner Wars (toyline)|Combiner Wars]]'' Deluxe Class toy, available with said toy in the United States, Australia, and Asia. Rebranded as ''[[Combiner Wars (comic)|Combiner Wars]]'' #19.
<gallery>
File:TF41 regcvr.jpg|Smirkus Maximus
File:TF41 subcvr.jpg|"Something is behind me, isn't it?"
File:TF41 cvrRI.jpg|Yes, a new Optimus Prime toy is out.
File:TF41 cvrRE.jpg|This kinda [[The Sum and Its Parts|looks familiar]].
File:CW Hound cvr.jpg|Hasbro exclusive comic with ''Combiner Wars'' Hound toy.
</gallery>

===Advertisements===
*''[[The Transformers: Windblade|Windblade]]'' [[All That Remains|#3]] - Combiner Wars, Part 5
*''The Transformers'' #42 - Combiner Wars Epilogue
*''[[The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|More than Meets the Eye]]'' [[The Sensuous Frame|#41]]
*''[[Transformers vs. G.I. Joe]]'' [[Headmasters (issue)|#7]]
*IDW Transformers graphic novel library
*''Little Nemo: Return to Slumberland'' (back cover)

===Reprints===
*'''''The Transformers: Combiner Wars''''' ([[August 12]], [[2015]]) ISBN 1631403869 / ISBN 978-1631403866
:*Contains issues #39 to #41, as well as the issues #1 to #3 of ''[[The Transformers: Windblade]]'' Volume 2.
:*Bonus material: cover gallery.

*'''''Transformers: The Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 65: Combiner Wars''''' ([[October 31]], [[2018]])
:*Hardcover collection of ''Robots in Disguise'' issues #39 to #42, as well as ''[[The Transformers: Windblade]]'' vol. 2 issues #1 to #4.
:*Bonus content includes an article on the [[Prime Wars Trilogy]].

*'''''The IDW Collection Phase Two: Volume 9''''' ([[June 19]], [[2019]]) ISBN 1684054842 / ISBN 978-1684054848
:*Contains issues #39 to #43, ''More than Meets the Eye'' issues #41 to #44, and ''Windblade'' vol. 2 issues #1 to #5

<gallery>
File:CW-TPB.jpg|'''''The Transformers: Combiner Wars'''; cover art by [[Casey Coller]] and [[Joana Lafuente]]
File:DefinitiveG1Collection v65.jpg|'''''Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 65: Combiner Wars'''''; cover art by [[Don Figueroa]] (Defensor) and [[Livio Ramondelli]] (retro)
File:IDWCollectionP2V9.jpg|'''''The IDW Collection Phase Two: Volume 9'''''; cover art by [[Marcelo Matere]]
</gallery>

==External links==
*[http://www.comicbookresources.com/comic-previews/transformers-41-idw-2015 Preview]

[[Category:Combiner Wars issues]]

Post

2018-11-21T20:15:26Z

Stryyder:

{{Comicstory
|series=op|issueno=25
|prev=A Sunrise Dark
|prev2=Ceremony
|next=
|caption=
|image=OP25 cvrA.jpg
|title="Post"
|publisher=[[IDW Publishing]]
|date=[[November 21]], 2018
|coverdate=October 2018
|written by=[[John Barber]]
|art by=[[Kei Zama]]
|colors by=[[Josh Burcham]]
|letters by=[[Tom B. Long]]
|editor=[[David Mariotte]]
|continuity=[[IDW Generation 1 continuity|IDW continuity]]
|chronology=[[IDW timeline|Current era]]
}}

'''In the aftermath of the battle with Unicron, our heroes build a new future on Earth, and we look back on the life of Optimus Prime.'''

==Synopsis==
''[[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Optimus Prime]] looks back on his life and remembers...''

''As Orion Pax slowly comes online in an [[Iacon (polity)|Iaconian]] [[hot spot]], the [[blacksmith]] supervising his forging is impressed by his size and calls the ancient storyteller [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]] to bear witness. Trion agrees there seems to be something special about Pax; that he is a 'bot who will be "worth weaving tales about." With some difficultly, Pax pulls free of the sparkfield, only for the first thing he witnesses to be the blacksmith mistreating the [[Scrounge (G1)|smaller 'bot]] who transforms into his medical equipment.''

Rebuilding on [[Earth]] continues in the wake of [[Unicron/Generation 1|Unicron]]'s attack. [[Arcee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Arcee]] and [[Marissa Faireborn]] talk about the future—about a "ceremony" [[Thundercracker (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Thundercracker]] is attending, about an upcoming funeral Arcee is going to miss—and Arcee tells Marissa the complicated story of her gender transition and how she's moved past the hardships she faced to find a job, friends, and a lover in [[Aileron]].

''Hoping to fight injustice, Orion Pax joins the Iaconian police force. During training, he is given his first gun by [[Kup (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Kup]], who is amused by his wide-eyed innocence.''

While [[Jazz (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jazz]] oversees clean-up and rebuilding in [[San Francisco]], [[Sofía Orozco]] arrives on the scene to film a new story. [[Brad Emory]] guest stars to continue berating Cybertronians and their presence on Earth, and Sofía allows him to speak before approaching Jazz for his point of view. Jazz merely tells her he's not here for thanks, he's just here to do what's right.

''Orion Pax and [[Ironhide (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ironhide]] come upon fellow officer [[Outback (G1)|Outback]] roughing up [[Ravage (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ravage]] for drawing graffiti. Puzzled by the symbol he has scratched into a wall, Pax questions Ravage as to its meaning, but Outback kicks the cat-bot and explains that it's the mark of the "[[Decepticon]]s."''

Unsure what to make of themselves on Earth and thinking they might restart their old [[Chic Chips]] business, brothers [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]] and [[Needlenose (G1)|Needlenose]] go to [[Pyra Magna]], the newly-appointed [[Mistress of Flame]], for some advice. Pyra is still getting used to her new role as spiritual adviser and isn't much help; Needlenose isn't surprised, regarding her as just another 'bot who abandoned everything they believed in, prompting Pyra to testily explain that she is attempting to bring new guidance to the [[Way of Flame]] in this post-Prime era, before all but kicking them out so she can prepare for the coming funeral.

''Repeated confrontations with the Decepticons send Orion down a dark path, as his fury builds over the subversive, criminal acts they partake in, which overshadow their justifiable anti-authoritarian roots. Seeing Pax's anger when he apprehends [[Swindle (G1)|Swindle]] in a [[simultronic]] bust, [[Jetfire (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jetfire]] reminds him of the systemic oppression that gave rise to the Decepticons in the first place and rebukes him for having lost sight of that and becoming "part of the problem."''

In [[Little Cybertron]], [[Rum-Maj]] and [[Wreck-Gar (G1)|Wreck-Gar]] watch as graves are dug for all those who perished during the conflict with Unicron. The cost of victory weighs heavily on Rum-Maj to the point she is unsure if it was even a victory at all; Wreck-Gar opines that there ''aren't'' any victories in life because it goes on regardless, with or without you, and you just have to do your best for as long as you're around.

''When [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]] extends an offer to Orion Pax to meet with him and talk, Orion discusses the matter with his closest allies. [[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]] thinks Pax should do it, in hopes that it will bring unity, but Ironhide disagrees, labeling all Decepticons murderers. Pax sides with 'Bee, telling Ironhide it's a chance to move past what has been and change the future for the better.''

In Africa, a group of poachers track a herd of elephants who have been displaced due to debris from Unicron landing on their grazing lands. Before the criminals can open fire on the animals, [[Buzzsaw (G1)|Buzzsaw]] swoops in to stop them. Acting in the deceased [[Soundwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Soundwave]]'s name, he decides that his old friend would understand if he made it so the poachers can't hurt anyone ever again...

''Following Pax's transformation into Optimus Prime, he successfully defeats and captures Megatron, but it is not long before a Decepticon raid frees Megatron from prison. [[Prowl (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Prowl]] fears that Megatron may spread the war to other planets, and deems Optimus's hope that the Decepticon leader will have seen the error of his ways and will start his movement over again peacefully to be "nuts".''

Bumblebee walks along a coastline as the sun sets on his last day on Earth, before he heads off to serve as the Cybertronian race's diplomatic envoy to the [[Galactic Council]] after the funeral the next day. Walking beside him is a familiar face: the deceased [[Starscream (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Starscream]], who gave up his life to ensure victory against Unicron, and who has traded roles with Bumblebee to somehow become a "ghost" only he can see. Bumblebee encourages the spectral Starscream to come with him on his mission, but Starscream doubts he would be welcome. Bumblebee jokingly accuses him of being mad that Optimus Prime is going to get all the credit for saving the universe; Starscream smiles and brushes it off, stating that he's sure people will remember him, and that will be enough.

''As Prowl predicted, the war moves off-planet, and civilizations die as a result. [[Slag (G1)|Slag]] accuses Optimus Prime of not caring, of believing the ends justify the means; [[Grimlock (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Grimlock]] calms him to prevent a fight, but shares his beliefs, and tells Prime so to his face.''

Thundercracker and [[Buster (IDW)|Buster]] attend an awards ceremony where he is up for "Best Original Screenplay" for his biopic of [[G.I. Joe (team)|G.I. Joe]] [[Chuckles]]. Wracked with nerves that are made all the worse by the fact that one of his favorite actresses [[Karen Fishook]] is announcing the winner, Thundercracker braces himself to hear the result...

''Optimus remembers his period of shifting identity, how he went from Prime back to Orion Pax and traveled the stars for a time until retaking the Prime title, then how [[Cybertronian colonies|Cybertron's colonies]] came to consider him [[The Arisen]], the Thirteenth Prime. He wonders, could it be true? Could ''that'' be why Alpha Trion was at his birth?''

Out in the void of [[space (the place)|space]], Aileron captains an exploration vessel crewed by Jetfire, [[Bob (IDW)|Bob]], [[D.0.C.]], and the remaining colonist ex-soldiers. When Jetfire picks up something unusual, Aileron orders them to set course for it with the intention of making friends, and tells [[Bump]] to contact Arcee on Earth so she can apologize to her for her inevitable late return.

''Following Optimus's annexation of Earth, he travels to the colony worlds to recruit new followers, exploiting their faith in his supposed divinity to convince them to join him. Prime's confidence in his new role concerns Aileron, as she remembers how naive and impressionable she was in the face of "The Arisen" not so along ago.''

Prowl oversees [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Shockwave]]'s incarceration in an undersea facility. Shockwave reflects on the many faces he was worn in his life, and comments that he is no longer sure which of them was ever the real him. In a moment that's as much dark self-reflection as it is condemnation of Shockwave, Prowl tells him that they were ''all'' the real him, because a 'bot is defined by—and will be judged by—their actions, not what they hoped to attain when they carried those actions out.

''In advance of the final showdown with Unicron, Optimus Prime has one final conversation with Arcee. He removes his [[mouthplate]] and hands it to her, symbolically removing the "mask" of his identity so he can face Unicron as his true self. Recalling Alpha Trion's words at the moment of his creation, that he would worth telling stories about, Prime tells Arcee that it is ''stories'', and the emotions and deeds they can inspire, that are truly important, moreso than the real-life person those stories happen to be about.''

Prime's discarded mouthplate now sits atop a coffin at the funeral everyone has been waiting for. With a small group of mourners that include representatives of various former colonies, the Earth heroes and organizations he fought with and against, and Prime's closest friends and fiercest detractors, [[Windblade (G1)|Windblade]] presides, and begins to read from a prepared speech... before she stops herself and instead begins to speak from her heart, delivering a eulogy that is both celebrates and damns with its truth. Prime has left no body; instead, they bury the ''idea'' of Optimus Prime—the idea of both the heroic warrior who fought oppression and saved lives and worlds, and the war hawk leader who pretended to divinity and lied and killed to achieve his desires—that he may be remembered always, and that they may move beyond him and build upon what he achieved to shape a better future on their new homeworld.

''Sinking into darkness, Optimus Prime thinks back on the successes and failures of his life one last time, and the fundamental contradiction they embodied: how could he claim to desire freedom for all beings when he presented that freedom as only achievable through him, with war and destruction ensuing when anyone opposed him? Now, at the end, Prime can see the truth, that "freedom" and "unity" are not in contradiction to one another, but two sides of the same coin, one only attainable through the other. In his life, he failed to find the harmony between the two.. but now that he is gone, he can see that it doesn't matter. Optimus Prime departs the living world with a smile on his lips, knowing that life will go on without him, and the stories of his journey, of his ''trying,'' will inspire others to keep doing the same.''

And a story is exactly what these "flashbacks" turn out to be; perhaps the dying Prime's life flashing before his eyes, but also Arcee telling the story of Optimus Prime's life to her class of students, made up of human and [[Elonian]] children, and the new generation of young Cybertronians formerly cared for by [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]]. [[Sideswipe (IDW)|Sideswipe]] questions how Arcee can know that what she is telling them about Prime's final realizations at the end of his life are true, since she wasn't there; Arcee responds that she knew what Prime thought and felt while he was alive, and that is enough to reach the same conclusion. Prime believed in a better future, she tells the children, and believing in the future means believing in the ability of people to change for the better. And all the stories of such change, like the story Arcee is telling them now... all those stories of triumph and failure, and all that they can teach and inspire... ''they'' are what will truly define that future.

==Featured characters==
Characters in ''italic text'' appear only in flashbacks. 
{{Featuredcharacters
|c1=
{{{!}}border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="background:transparent"
{{!}}-
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*''[[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Optimus Prime/Orion Pax]]'' (4)
*[[Arcee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Arcee]] (5)
*''[[Kup (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Kup]]'' (8)
*''[[Ironhide (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ironhide]]'' (9)
*''[[Outback (G1)|Outback]]'' (10)
*[[Jazz (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jazz]] (15)
*[[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]] (17)
*[[Pyra Magna]] (19)
*[[Swift (G1)|Swift]] (20)
*[[Jumpstream]] (21)
*[[Slide]] (22)
*[[Skyburst (G1)|Skyburst]] (23)
*[[Dust Up]] (24)
*[[Jetfire (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jetfire]] (25)
*[[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]] (26)
*''[[Hound (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hound]]?'' (27)
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*''[[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Tumbler]]'' (28)
*[[Prowl (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Prowl]] (29)
*''[[Slag (G1)|Slag]]'' (36)
*[[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]] (37)
*''[[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]]'' (38)
*''[[Sludge (G1)|Sludge]]'' (39)
*''[[Grimlock (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Grimlock]]'' (40)
*[[Roulette (Universe)|Roulette]] (44)
*[[Midnight Express (RID)|Midnight Express]] (45)
*[[Bump]] (47)
*[[Aileron]] (49)
*''[[Oiler]]'' (50)
*[[Windblade (G1)|Windblade]] (53)
*[[Strafe (IDW)|Strafe]] (55)
*[[Chromia (G1)|Chromia]] (56)
*[[G.B. Blackrock|Garrison Blackrock/Sovereign]] (57)
{{!}}}

|c2=
*[[Sparkstalker]] (12)
*''[[Ravage (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ravage]]'' (16)
*[[Needlenose (G1)|Needlenose]] (18)
*''[[Swindle (G1)|Swindle]]'' (30)
*[[Buzzsaw (G1)|Buzzsaw]] (34)
*[[Starscream (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Starscream]]'s ghost (35)
*[[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Shockwave]] (51)

|c3=
'''[[G.I. Joe (team)|G.I. Joe]]'''
*[[Scarlett]] (58)
*[[Matt Trakker]] (59)
*[[Ayana Jones|Mayday]] (60)
*[[Zilong Qian|Talon]] (62)

'''Others'''
*[[Marissa Faireborn]] (6)
*[[Brad Emory]] (11)
*[[Sofía Orozco]] (12)
*[[Karen Fishook]] (43)
*[[President of the United States|President]] (61)
*[[Action Man]] (64)
*[[Sgt. Savage]] (65)

|h4=Other Cybertronians|c4=
*''[[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]]'' (1)
*''[[Scrounge (G1)|Scrounge]]'' (2)
*''Unnamed [[blacksmith]]'' (3)
*[[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticon]]s (7)
*[[Lightbright (G1)|Lightbright]] (13)
*[[Rum-Maj]] (31)
*[[Wreck-Gar (G1)|Wreck-Gar]] (32)
*? (33)
*[[Thundercracker (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Thundercracker]] (41)
*[[Centurion (IDW)|Centurion]] (54)
*[[Sideswipe (IDW)|Sideswipe]] (66)
*[[Slicer (Decepticon)|Slicer]] (67)

|h5=Others|c5=
*[[Livia]] (14)
*[[Buster (IDW)|Buster]] (42)
*[[Bob (IDW)|Bob]] (46)
*[[D.0.C.]] (48)
*''[[Unicron]]'' (52)
*[[Rom]] (63)
}}

==Quotes==
"Our job is to keep the '''peace.''' We only kill as the '''last option'''—when '''evil''' leaves us no choice." 
"'''Ha ha ha!''' Kid, I thought you were too '''serious'''—glad ta see a '''bleak''' sense of '''humor''' in ya."
:—'''Orion Pax''' and '''Kup'''

"This place is really popular, you know, '''Rummy-Cube,''' my love. But do you know '''why?''' Ask me why." 
"No." 
"It seems people are '''dying''' to get here!"
:—'''Wreck-Gar''' and '''Rum-Maj''' visit Little Cybertron's graveyard

"'''Winning?''' What does it '''mean?!''' Maybe there's no '''winning''', my dear, because the game doesn't '''end.''' Some '''pieces''' fall off the board, but new '''pink pegs''' get stuck in the car and we keep passing '''go''', keep collecting '''200 Shanix.'''" 
"Perhaps. Perhaps it '''is''' a victory when the '''game''' continues... '''regardless''' of the players."
:—'''Wreck-Gar''' and '''Rum-Maj'''

"'''Soundwave''' laid down his life so '''everybody''' could live. But for '''you'''... I think he'd understand if I made an '''exception.'''"
:—'''Buzzsaw''' attacks the poachers

'''Optimus Prime:''' "'''Find''' [Megatron]. But I want the '''opportunity''' for peace. We're fighting for the '''same thing,''' after all." 
'''Prowl:''' "He's '''nuts.'''" 
'''Bumblebee:''' "Heh. He's '''Optimus.'''"

"You '''know''' you saved the universe, right?" 
"Pfft. Not if you '''ask''' anyone." 
"Oh Primus. You're '''jealous''' that '''Optimus''' got all the credit." 
"Who, '''me?''' Jealous? It's '''okay.''' People will '''probably''' remember me. That's '''all''' I can ask for, I guess." 
:—'''Bumblebee''' and '''Starscream'''

"I was '''right''', you know. When it all comes down to it, everything is about '''resources'''... there is a finite amount of '''everything'''. Even '''identities'''. And I am no longer sure which version of '''myself''' was the '''real''' one." 
"They '''all''' were, Shockwave. All that was done to you, all that you did to yourself... all that you did to '''others.''' We are our '''actions'''... not our '''hopes.'''"
:—'''Shockwave''' and '''Prowl'''

"'''Today''', on his adopted world of '''Earth'''... we bury '''Optimus Prime'''. Not his '''body'''—that's gone. Not his '''spark'''—that belongs to '''Solus.''' We bury the '''idea''' of Optimus Prime. We was a warrior. A hero. A killer. A liar. '''Destruction''' was his company. Did he '''cause''' it—or prevent '''worse?''' The thing that made Optimus who he '''was'''... was that he '''asked''' those questions. Life is not '''simple''', and neither is '''death.''' We inter the '''idea''' of Optimus Prime into the '''soil''' of his '''adopted world'''... a world that has, in turn, adopted us '''all.''' 'Til all are one."
:—'''Windblade''' delivers a eulogy for Optimus Prime

"'''Freedom''' and unity (...) describe the same '''phenomenon.''' '''One''' cannot be free unless all are. And if '''all''' are '''free'''—they are as '''one.''' I fell short of '''achieving''' this... but it doesn't matter. The '''goal''' isn't important. The journey is. And it '''never''' ends."
:—'''Optimus Prime''''s final words

"Believing in the future means believing we can '''change.''' The '''story''' of that change, the story of becoming what we '''are'''—what we were '''meant''' to be... '''that''' is the true history of the '''world.''' And '''this''', children, is our future. This is '''our''' world."
:—'''Arcee''' signs off

==Notes==
===Continuity notes===
*This issue is the final comic in the [[IDW Generation 1 continuity]]. Following on from the events of [[Ceremony|''Unicron'' #6]], it serves as an epilogue to that story, to the ''Optimus Prime'' series and John Barber's seven-year ''Transformers'' run, and to the IDW universe as a whole. In terms of chronology, however, portions of [[How To Say Goodbye And Mean It: Part 2|''Lost Light'' #25]] take place in the far future, long after this issue.
*Scattered remarks made here and there over the last few years of IDW comics have implied a recontextualization of Arcee's origins from her [[Spotlight: Arcee|controversial ''Spotlight'' back in 2008]], but with this issue, Barber—working with Transformers fan Jenevieve Frank to address the subject sensitively and thoroughly—finally addresses the matter directly. In no uncertain terms, Arcee was (in her words) "forged male, which did not match [her] spark," and willingly agreed to the procedure Jhiaxus performed on her. Her erratic behavior following this was not the result of the transition itself, but the lack of aftercare Jhiaxus provided ("the Cybertronian equivalent" of "bad meds," Arcee and Marissa collectively conclude).
*Arcee also notes that [[Anode]] (a trans character featured in the pages of ''[[The Transformers: Lost Light|Lost Light]]'') offered to help her, only to vanish. Given that Anode only realized her trans identity after leaving Cybertron to escape the war, this means she must have met Arcee when she returned to Cybertron just prior to events shown in [[Dissolution Part 1: Some Other Cybertron|''Lost Light'' #1]], and her "disappearance" was her abduction to the future by [[Mortilus|the Necrobot]], seen in that same issue. The implication, then, is that the things Arcee discovered from Anode (like the fact she ''didn't'' have to have her [[CNA]] altered in order to transition) coupled with Anode's disappearance before she could help her triggered the rampage the already-unstable Arcee was on as ''Spotlight: Arcee'' began.
*Orion's first two flashbacks are the earliest points we have seen in his life in this continuity, prior to his previously-chronologically-earliest appearance in [[Chaos Theory Part 1|''The Transformers'' vol. 1 #22]]. The third also seems intended to be set before this issue, in his younger days before he became a police captain (Outback still calls him "rookie," and the narration implies it is before he addresses the Senate, as seen in [[Chaos Theory Part 2|''The Transformers'' vol. 1 #23]]), but see "Errors" below.
*Needlenose and Tracks were previously shown in business together selling Chic Chips before the war in [[The Transgressors|''The Transformers'' #44]].
*Following her acceptance into the ranks of the Torchbearers in ''Unicron'' #6, replacing the deceased [[Stormclash]], Slide is shown to have adopted their red-and-green color scheme. With Pyra ascending to the position of Mistress of Flame, Skyburst has become the new leader of the team, and Swift has joined them as the new sixth member and also taken their colors. Swift's not here for combining reasons, though; [[Conquerors Part 1: Aphelion|''The Transformers'' #46]] explained there are always six Torchbearers, representing the hexagonal lattice of [[Solus Prime]]'s [[Creation Lathe]].
*Orion's fourth flashback takes place after the various flashbacks we've seen throughout the ''Optimus Prime'' series, but before ''[[The Transformers: Autocracy|Autocracy]]'', and depicts Orion in his "angry and violent" phase that he fell into following the events seen in [[New Cybertron Part 5: Future Glories Lost|''Optimus Prime'' #5]].
*[[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Chromedome]] appears with Pax's unit in this flashback; presumably he's there because he's still partners with Prowl in the [[Iaconian Mechaforensic Division]] at this time, as seen in [[Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|''More than Meets the Eye'' #9]]-[[Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|11]]. Per those issues, his name at this time is "Tumbler."
*Process of elimination would indicate the block-colored sixth 'bot on Orion's team seen in this flashback is Hound, who was part of his unit in ''Autocracy'', but hasn't shown up in any of the other looks at the past in the ''Optimus Prime'' series. His cannon's on the wrong shoulder, though.
*This flashback sees Swindle mention a simultronic dealer named [[Marauder (G1)|Marauder]]. A 'bot by this name was previously referenced in [[Dissolution Part 3: A World Misplaced|''Lost Light'' #3]], one of the deceased Transformers whose essences were captured in one of the Necrobot's spark-flowers, whose death was apparently the work of Starscream.
*Orion's fifth flashback occurs between [[The Hunt for Soundwave|''Autocracy'' #3]] and [[Cause and Effect|#4]], but it retcons the precise circumstances of Orion and Megatron's meeting. Orion was not politely invited to meet with Megatron and given time to talk it over with his comrades; he was ''forced'' to do so by Decepticons who were holding Bumblebee hostage (with 'Bee even telling Orion not to go because it was a trap, versus his encouragement in his story) and had to go to the meeting right away.
*During the fifth flashback, Ironhide refers to the death of the Senate, as seen in [[Megatron Origin issue 4|''Megatron Origin'' #4]].
*Buzzsaw is defending elephants against poachers in Soundwave's memory because elephants were Soundwave's favourite Earth creatures, as he revealed in [[New Cybertron Part 4: Dance Among the Shadows|''Optimus Prime'' #4]].
*Captain of continuity to the very last, John Barber plugs one of the larger gaps in the IDW timeline with Orion's sixth flashback, which details how Megatron escaped captivity after he was imprisoned by the Autobots in [[Primacy issue 4|''Primacy'' #4]].
*Following his death in ''Unicron'' #6 and conspicuous absence from the gathering of the spirits of the dead seen in the same issue, Starscream is revealed to have persisted after death as a "ghost" who can only be seen by Bumblebee, in an inverse of their relationship for the last three years (spanning [[The Transgressors|''The Transformers'' vol. 2 #44]], though all of [[The Transformers: Till All Are One|''Till All Are One,'']] up to [[The Falling, Chapter 4: The Hallowing|''Optimus Prime'' #19]]). Exactly how Starscream has done this is left unsaid; perhaps his spirit has wound up in [[Infraspace]] like Bumblebee's did, given that the Talisman, which killed Starscream, showed the ability to project a 'bot's consciousness there in [[Ghost in the Machine (IDW)|''Revolutionaries'' #8]]. See also "Transformers references," below.
*Bumblebee is leaving to become the Transformers' diplomatic envoy to the Galactic Council. ''Lost Light'' #25 established that Prowl was reaching out to the Council to have them oversee Megatron's second trial, in the hope the Cybertronian race would finally be allowed to join. Sounds rather like he got his wish.
*Orion's seventh flashback showcases his tempestuous relationship with the Dinobots, which was the subject of ''[[The Transformers: Punishment]]''. Slug is correctly still referred to as "Slag" during this flashback, as it's set before he changed his name in [[No Exit: Dark Cybertron Chapter 6|''More than Meets the Eye'' #25]].
*One of the other writers competing with Thundercracker for his award is "Michael Costa," a tip of the hat to former IDW ''Transformers'' writer [[Mike Costa]], who rehabilitated Thundercracker all the way back in 2010's [[Things Fall Apart, Part 3: "Seasons in Flight"|''Transformers'' vol. 1 #4]] by establishing him as a fan of Earth television, thereby setting him on the path to this moment.
*Thundercracker was established to be a fan of Karen Fishook (who played the mother of the titular character of his favorite TV show ''[[Nurse Whitney]]'') in [[Starscream: The Movie (comic)|the 2018 ''Optimus Prime'' annual]].
*Orion's eighth flashback occurs during his solo space travels, somewhere between ''[[Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime]]'' and [[Syndromica (1)|''Robots in Disguise'' #6]].
*Orion's ninth flashback falls somewhere between the end of ''[[Revolution]]'' and the start of ''Optimus Prime''.
*It's not called out by name, but Shockwave appears to have been imprisoned on ''[[Nemesis (G1)|Lemuria]]'', a.k.a the former Decepticon spacecraft ''Nemesis'', which was being used as an underwater headquarters by G.I. Joe in [[G.I. Joe vol. 5|''G.I. Joe'' vol. 5]] following its capture by the [[Earth Defense Command]] in [[White Heat|''The Transformers'' vol. 2 #57]].
*The imprisoned Shockwave has been strung up with his arms and legs removed, a plight that was also suffered by [[Getaway]] in [[Speak, Memory! (Part 2)|''More than Meets the Eye'' #49]]. Perhaps this is standard Cybertronian protocol for exceptionally dangerous prisoners. Additionally, the perspective and framing of Shockwave's dismembered body calls back to how he was similarly shown in [[Maximum Dinobots issue 2|''Maximum Dinobots'' #2]], and [[Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 3|''Last Stand of the Wreckers'' #3]], and [[Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|''More Than Meets The Eye'' #11]]. In each of those other circumstances, Shockwave was being rebuilt and getting a new chance to further his schemes; here, he has been taken apart most likely for keeps.
*Orion's tenth and final flashback is set during the events of [[Unicron issue 5|''Unicron'' #5]], and shows his decision to remove his faceplate prior to the end of that issue, which went unexplained at the time.
*Windblade begins Optimus's funeral by saying "Loss of life is only a tragedy if it is without..." before stopping herself. The next word is "purpose"; this rite was previously used by [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]] at the funeral of [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (G1)|Fastback]] in [[Megatron Origin issue 3|''Megatron Origin'' #3]], and by Optimus at the funeral of Sideswipe in [[The Dead Come Home, Part 1 (of 2)|''Optimus Prime'' #13]].
* The Elonian child on the final page appears to be the same young girl who appeared in ''Unicron'' issues [[Our Darkest|#1]] and [[Ceremony|#6]].
*And so the question of whether or not Optimus Prime truly is The Arisen is... left ambiguous. He ''might'' be the reincarnation of the Thirteenth Prime... or he might not. In the end, it doesn't matter; what matters is what he used the story that he was to accomplish.

===Transformers references===
*The text on the first page of this issue is taken from the [[bio]] included with the [[Tech Spec]]s of the [[Optimus Prime (G1)/toys#Generation 1|original Optimus Prime toy]]. The "line graph" below it is based on (but is not an exact replica of) Prime's original Tech Spec graph itself.
*The little robot who transforms into the blackmith's medical equipment (apparently some kind of magnifying lens) is [[Scrounge (G1)|Scrounge]], a comic-original character who appeared in [[The Smelting Pool!|issue #17]] of the [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|original Marvel ''Transformers'' comic]]. He's made several silent cameo guest-spots dotted across IDW history that, like this one, have typically depicted him in unfortunate situations, but this is the first time we've seen his alternate mode. In the Marvel comic, he transformed into a wheel, and in homage to that, he's here seen chasing after a circular piece of his own [[kibble]] that's popped off and is rolling away.
*The freshly-forged Orion Pax's appearance is mostly based on his original look from the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|Generation 1 cartoon]] episode "[[War Dawn (episode)|War Dawn]]" with a few embellishments, like the angular protruding windshield-chest reminiscent of the design created by [[Guido Guidi]] for his appearance in "[[Spotlight: Blurr]]."
*Multiple human workers seen throughout this issue are wearing tan shirt, blue pants, and yellow helmet and boots worn by [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] and [[Sparkplug Witwicky|his father]] in the Generation 1 cartoon.
*On page 3, a sign is shown advertising [[energon goodie]]s as they appeared in ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]'', as wafer-like "sticks of gum" kept in a square container.
*Orion Pax notes that, as a truck, Functionism permitted him to have become "a scientist, a librarian, or a dockworker" instead of a police officer. Orion was a dockworker in the Generation 1 cartoon, and a librarian in both [[Dreamwave Productions]]' [[Dreamwave Generation One continuity|comic book continuity]] and the [[Aligned continuity family]]; "scientist" was presented as a possible job he could have had in Optimus Prime's original Generation 1 profile, were he not leader of the Autobots instead.
*Swindle refers to a 'bot named "[[Shadowhawk]]," which was the Japanese-market name for [[Divebomb (Energon)|''Energon'' Divebomb]].
*Starscream surviving death as a ghost is, of course, a concept that originated in the Generation 1 cartoon episode "[[Starscream's Ghost]]," and has seen a lot of play in subsequent media, particularly in Japan. If the Infraspace explanation isn't the case, perhaps IDW's Starscream really does just have the same "indestructible spark" as the original, which the [[Beast Wars: Transformers (cartoon)|''Beast Wars'' cartoon]] credited with his unique ability to persist after death.
*Midnight Express remarks that he likes the cold, an aspect of his personality derived from his original Japanaese characterization. This trait survived into the English-language bio included with Hasbro's release of the figure, but not into the English-dubbed version of the [[Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2001 cartoon)|''Robots in Disguise'' cartoon]].
*Optimus drops [[Furmanism#IT NEVER ENDS|a famous climactic Furmanism]] as the final line of his narration.
*Arcee serving as a teacher for the next generation of Cybertronians alludes to her [[Arcee (Animated)|''Animated'' counterpart]], who was a teacher before the war.
*Several young members of that next generation appear along with the young Sideswipe on the final page. Apart from one who is drawn to look like the deceased [[Wheeljack (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Wheeljack]] (and coloured like Wheeljack's [[Action Master]] redeco, [[Slicer (Decepticon)|Slicer]]), the rest appear to be generics who colourist Josh Burcham has given the color schemes of other characters. One has been colored like [[Sideways (Armada)|''Armada'' Sideways]], and another like [[Turbofire]].

===Real-life references===
*Wreck-Gar uses a few board game metaphors:
**"...you know, Rummy-cube, my love..."-a slight allusion to {{w|Rummikub}}, a tile adaptation of set-collecting games like Rummy.
**"New pink pegs get stuck in the car"—a gameplay mechanic from {{w|The Game of Life}}.
**"We keep passing Go, keep collecting 200 [[Shanix]]"—an allusion to passing Go and collecting $200 in [[Monopoly]]
*Thundercracker has titled his Chuckles movie ''Last Laugh,'' which was the name of the real-life hardcover collection of the IDW ''G.I. Joe'' comic books telling the story that T.C. has based his screenplay on.
*Karen Fishook starts to read the result of the award ceremony by saying "And the winner is..." before correcting herself and saying "And the award goes to..." Her first impulse is how they used to announce the Oscars, before it was changed in 1989 to the latter (or rather, to "And the ''Oscar'' goes to...").
*The imagery of Bumblebee walking on a beach receiving guidance from someone who cannot be seen, showing only one set of footprints in the sand, is similar to common inspirational "--and that's when I carried you" allusions to [[Jesus]].

===Errors===
*With regard to Orion's third flashback, it shows Ravage drawing graffiti of the Decepticon symbol when Orion was still a rookie beat cop... but [[Chaos Theory Part 1|''The Transformers'' vol. 1 #22]] showed that Orion had become captain of the Rodion precinct before Megatron ever thought the symbol up.

===Other trivia===
*Originally solicited for release in October 2018, this issue was held back until late November to ensure that it was released after the delayed ''Unicron'' #6.
*This issue features 24 story pages instead of the usual 20. The remaining four pages of the comic are taken up by the introductory "Tech Specs" page (described above), two bookend pages that simply read "The Beginning" and "The End," and a farewell letter from writer John Barber reminiscing about his time on IDW's ''Transformers'' comics and thanking his fellow creators.

===Covers (3)===
*'''Cover A:''' A huge cast group shot surrounding a portrait of Optimus Prime, by [[Kei Zama]] and [[Josh Burcham]]; an homage to Marvel Comics' 25th anniversary covers from 1986. [[Heavy Traffic!|Marvel's ''The Transformers'' #22]] featured one of these covers, but the note on the credits page that it is drawn "after {{w|Walt Simonson|Walter Simonson}}" indicates it's specifically evoking the cover of [https://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Thor_Vol_1_373 ''Thor'' #373] and Simsonson's regal depiction of the God of Thunder.
*'''Cover B:''' Optimus Prime, with other members in the pieces of a shattered Autobot symbol behind him, by [[Casey Coller]] and [[John-Paul Bove]]
*'''Retailer incentive cover:''' ''Robots in Disguise'' artist [[Andrew Griffith]] returns to draw key cast members from Barber's run one last time
<gallery>
File:OP25 cvrA.jpg|
File:OP25 cvrB.jpg|
File:OP25 cvrRI.jpg|
</gallery>

===Advertisements===
*''[[Sonic the Hedgehog|Team Sonic Racing]]'' one-shot

==External links==
*[http://www.adventuresinpoortaste.com/2018/11/16/exclusive-idw-preview-optimus-prime-25/ Preview]

[[Category:Optimus Prime issues]]

Post

2018-11-21T20:14:40Z

Stryyder:

{{Comicstory
|series=op|issueno=25
|prev=A Sunrise Dark
|prev2=Ceremony
|next=
|caption=
|image=OP25 cvrA.jpg
|title="Post"
|publisher=[[IDW Publishing]]
|date=[[November 21]], 2018
|coverdate=October 2018
|written by=[[John Barber]]
|art by=[[Kei Zama]]
|colors by=[[Josh Burcham]]
|letters by=[[Tom B. Long]]
|editor=[[David Mariotte]]
|continuity=[[IDW Generation 1 continuity|IDW continuity]]
|chronology=[[IDW timeline|Current era]]
}}

'''In the aftermath of the battle with Unicron, our heroes build a new future on Earth, and we look back on the life of Optimus Prime.'''

==Synopsis==
''[[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Optimus Prime]] looks back on his life and remembers...''

''As Orion Pax slowly comes online in an [[Iacon (polity)|Iaconian]] [[hot spot]], the [[blacksmith]] supervising his forging is impressed by his size and calls the ancient storyteller [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]] to bear witness. Trion agrees there seems to be something special about Pax; that he is a 'bot who will be "worth weaving tales about." With some difficultly, Pax pulls free of the sparkfield, only for the first thing he witnesses to be the blacksmith mistreating the [[Scrounge (G1)|smaller 'bot]] who transforms into his medical equipment.''

Rebuilding on [[Earth]] continues in the wake of [[Unicron/Generation 1|Unicron]]'s attack. [[Arcee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Arcee]] and [[Marissa Faireborn]] talk about the future—about a "ceremony" [[Thundercracker (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Thundercracker]] is attending, about an upcoming funeral Arcee is going to miss—and Arcee tells Marissa the complicated story of her gender transition and how she's moved past the hardships she faced to find a job, friends, and a lover in [[Aileron]].

''Hoping to fight injustice, Orion Pax joins the Iaconian police force. During training, he is given his first gun by [[Kup (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Kup]], who is amused by his wide-eyed innocence.''

While [[Jazz (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jazz]] oversees clean-up and rebuilding in [[San Francisco]], [[Sofía Orozco]] arrives on the scene to film a new story. [[Brad Emory]] guest stars to continue berating Cybertronians and their presence on Earth, and Sofía allows him to speak before approaching Jazz for his point of view. Jazz merely tells her he's not here for thanks, he's just here to do what's right.

''Orion Pax and [[Ironhide (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ironhide]] come upon fellow officer [[Outback (G1)|Outback]] roughing up [[Ravage (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ravage]] for drawing graffiti. Puzzled by the symbol he has scratched into a wall, Pax questions Ravage as to its meaning, but Outback kicks the cat-bot and explains that it's the mark of the "[[Decepticon]]s."''

Unsure what to make of themselves on Earth and thinking they might restart their old [[Chic Chips]] business, brothers [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]] and [[Needlenose (G1)|Needlenose]] go to [[Pyra Magna]], the newly-appointed [[Mistress of Flame]], for some advice. Pyra is still getting used to her new role as spiritual adviser and isn't much help; Needlenose isn't surprised, regarding her as just another 'bot who abandoned everything they believed in, prompting Pyra to testily explain that she is attempting to bring new guidance to the [[Way of Flame]] in this post-Prime era, before all but kicking them out so she can prepare for the coming funeral.

''Repeated confrontations with the Decepticons send Orion down a dark path, as his fury builds over the subversive, criminal acts they partake in, which overshadow their justifiable anti-authoritarian roots. Seeing Pax's anger when he apprehends [[Swindle (G1)|Swindle]] in a [[simultronic]] bust, [[Jetfire (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jetfire]] reminds him of the systemic oppression that gave rise to the Decepticons in the first place and rebukes him for having lost sight of that and becoming "part of the problem."''

In [[Little Cybertron]], [[Rum-Maj]] and [[Wreck-Gar (G1)|Wreck-Gar]] watch as graves are dug for all those who perished during the conflict with Unicron. The cost of victory weighs heavily on Rum-Maj to the point she is unsure if it was even a victory at all; Wreck-Gar opines that there ''aren't'' any victories in life because it goes on regardless, with or without you, and you just have to do your best for as long as you're around.

''When [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]] extends an offer to Orion Pax to meet with him and talk, Orion discusses the matter with his closest allies. [[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]] thinks Pax should do it, in hopes that it will bring unity, but Ironhide disagrees, labeling all Decepticons murderers. Pax sides with 'Bee, telling Ironhide it's a chance to move past what has been and change the future for the better.''

In Africa, a group of poachers track a herd of elephants who have been displaced due to debris from Unicron landing on their grazing lands. Before the criminals can open fire on the animals, [[Buzzsaw (G1)|Buzzsaw]] swoops in to stop them. Acting in the deceased [[Soundwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Soundwave]]'s name, he decides that his old friend would understand if he made it so the poachers can't hurt anyone ever again...

''Following Pax's transformation into Optimus Prime, he successfully defeats and captures Megatron, but it is not long before a Decepticon raid frees Megatron from prison. [[Prowl (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Prowl]] fears that Megatron may spread the war to other planets, and deems Optimus's hope that the Decepticon leader will have seen the error of his ways and will start his movement over again peacefully to be "nuts".''

Bumblebee walks along a coastline as the sun sets on his last day on Earth, before he heads off to serve as the Cybertronian race's diplomatic envoy to the [[Galactic Council]] after the funeral the next day. Walking beside him is a familiar face: the deceased [[Starscream (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Starscream]], who gave up his life to ensure victory against Unicron, and who has traded roles with Bumblebee to somehow become a "ghost" only he can see. Bumblebee encourages the spectral Starscream to come with him on his mission, but Starscream doubts he would be welcome. Bumblebee jokingly accuses him of being mad that Optimus Prime is going to get all the credit for saving the universe; Starscream smiles and brushes it off, stating that he's sure people will remember him, and that will be enough.

''As Prowl predicted, the war moves off-planet, and civilizations die as a result. [[Slag (G1)|Slag]] accuses Optimus Prime of not caring, of believing the ends justify the means; [[Grimlock (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Grimlock]] calms him to prevent a fight, but shares his beliefs, and tells Prime so to his face.''

Thundercracker and [[Buster (IDW)|Buster]] attend an awards ceremony where he is up for "Best Original Screenplay" for his biopic of [[G.I. Joe (team)|G.I. Joe]] [[Chuckles]]. Wracked with nerves that are made all the worse by the fact that one of his favorite actresses [[Karen Fishook]] is announcing the winner, Thundercracker braces himself to hear the result...

''Optimus remembers his period of shifting identity, how he went from Prime back to Orion Pax and traveled the stars for a time until retaking the Prime title, then how [[Cybertronian colonies|Cybertron's colonies]] came to consider him [[The Arisen]], the Thirteenth Prime. He wonders, could it be true? Could ''that'' be why Alpha Trion was at his birth?''

Out in the void of [[space (the place)|space]], Aileron captains an exploration vessel crewed by Jetfire, [[Bob (IDW)|Bob]], [[D.0.C.]], and the remaining colonist ex-soldiers. When Jetfire picks up something unusual, Aileron orders them to set course for it with the intention of making friends, and tells [[Bump]] to contact Arcee on Earth so she can apologize to her for her inevitable late return.

''Following Optimus's annexation of Earth, he travels to the colony worlds to recruit new followers, exploiting their faith in his supposed divinity to convince them to join him. Prime's confidence in his new role concerns Aileron, as she remembers how naive and impressionable she was in the face of "The Arisen" not so along ago.''

Prowl oversees [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Shockwave]]'s incarceration in an undersea facility. Shockwave reflects on the many faces he was worn in his life, and comments that he is no longer sure which of them was ever the real him. In a moment that's as much dark self-reflection as it is condemnation of Shockwave, Prowl tells him that they were ''all'' the real him, because a 'bot is defined by—and will be judged by—their actions, not what they hoped to attain when they carried those actions out.

''In advance of the final showdown with Unicron, Optimus Prime has one final conversation with Arcee. He removes his [[mouthplate]] and hands it to her, symbolically removing the "mask" of his identity so he can face Unicron as his true self. Recalling Alpha Trion's words at the moment of his creation, that he would worth telling stories about, Prime tells Arcee that it is ''stories'', and the emotions and deeds they can inspire, that are truly important, moreso than the real-life person those stories happen to be about.''

Prime's discarded mouthplate now sits atop a coffin at the funeral everyone has been waiting for. With a small group of mourners that include representatives of various former colonies, the Earth heroes and organizations he fought with and against, and Prime's closest friends and fiercest detractors, [[Windblade (G1)|Windblade]] presides, and begins to read from a prepared speech... before she stops herself and instead begins to speak from her heart, delivering a eulogy that is both celebrates and damns with its truth. Prime has left no body; instead, they bury the ''idea'' of Optimus Prime—the idea of both the heroic warrior who fought oppression and saved lives and worlds, and the war hawk leader who pretended to divinity and lied and killed to achieve his desires—that he may be remembered always, and that they may move beyond him and build upon what he achieved to shape a better future on their new homeworld.

''Sinking into darkness, Optimus Prime thinks back on the successes and failures of his life one last time, and the fundamental contradiction they embodied: how could he claim to desire freedom for all beings when he presented that freedom as only achievable through him, with war and destruction ensuing when anyone opposed him? Now, at the end, Prime can see the truth, that "freedom" and "unity" are not in contradiction to one another, but two sides of the same coin, one only attainable through the other. In his life, he failed to find the harmony between the two.. but now that he is gone, he can see that it doesn't matter. Optimus Prime departs the living world with a smile on his lips, knowing that life will go on without him, and the stories of his journey, of his ''trying,'' will inspire others to keep doing the same.''

And a story is exactly what these "flashbacks" turn out to be; perhaps the dying Prime's life flashing before his eyes, but also Arcee telling the story of Optimus Prime's life to her class of students, made up of human and [[Elonian]] children, and the new generation of young Cybertronians formerly cared for by [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]]. [[Sideswipe (IDW)|Sideswipe]] questions how Arcee can know that what she is telling them about Prime's final realizations at the end of his life are true, since she wasn't there; Arcee responds that she knew what Prime thought and felt while he was alive, and that is enough to reach the same conclusion. Prime believed in a better future, she tells the children, and believing in the future means believing in the ability of people to change for the better. And all the stories of such change, like the story Arcee is telling them now... all those stories of triumph and failure, and all that they can teach and inspire... ''they'' are what will truly define that future.

==Featured characters==
Characters in ''italic text'' appear only in flashbacks. 
{{Featuredcharacters
|c1=
{{{!}}border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="background:transparent"
{{!}}-
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*''[[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Optimus Prime/Orion Pax]]'' (4)
*[[Arcee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Arcee]] (5)
*''[[Kup (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Kup]]'' (8)
*''[[Ironhide (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ironhide]]'' (9)
*''[[Outback (G1)|Outback]]'' (10)
*[[Jazz (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jazz]] (15)
*[[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]] (17)
*[[Pyra Magna]] (19)
*[[Swift (G1)|Swift]] (20)
*[[Jumpstream]] (21)
*[[Slide]] (22)
*[[Skyburst (G1)|Skyburst]] (23)
*[[Dust Up]] (24)
*[[Jetfire (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jetfire]] (25)
*[[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]] (26)
*''[[Hound (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hound]]?'' (27)
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*''[[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Tumbler]]'' (28)
*[[Prowl (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Prowl]] (29)
*''[[Slag (G1)|Slag]]'' (36)
*[[Swoop (G1)|Swoop]] (37)
*''[[Snarl (G1)|Snarl]]'' (38)
*''[[Sludge (G1)|Sludge]]'' (39)
*''[[Grimlock (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Grimlock]]'' (40)
*[[Roulette (Universe)|Roulette]] (44)
*[[Midnight Express (RID)|Midnight Express]] (45)
*[[Bump]] (47)
*[[Aileron]] (49)
*''[[Oiler]]'' (50)
*[[Windblade (G1)|Windblade]] (53)
*[[Strafe (IDW)|Strafe]] (55)
*[[Chromia (G1)|Chromia]] (56)
*[[G.B. Blackrock|Garrison Blackrock/Sovereign]] (57)
{{!}}}

|c2=
*[[Sparkstalker]] (12)
*''[[Ravage (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ravage]]'' (16)
*[[Needlenose (G1)|Needlenose]] (18)
*''[[Swindle (G1)|Swindle]]'' (30)
*[[Buzzsaw (G1)|Buzzsaw]] (34)
*[[Starscream (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Starscream]]'s ghost (35)
*[[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Shockwave]] (51)

|c3=
'''[[G.I. Joe (team)|G.I. Joe]]'''
*[[Scarlett]] (58)
*[[Matt Trakker]] (59)
*[[Ayana Jones|Mayday]] (60)
*[[Zilong Qian|Talon]] (62)

'''Others'''
*[[Marissa Faireborn]] (6)
*[[Brad Emory]] (11)
*[[Sofía Orozco]] (12)
*[[Karen Fishook]] (43)
*[[President of the United States|President]] (61)
*[[Action Man]] (64)
*[[Sgt. Savage]] (65)

|h4=Other Cybertronians|c4=
*''[[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]]'' (1)
*''[[Scrounge (G1)|Scrounge]]'' (2)
*''Unnamed [[blacksmith]]'' (3)
*[[Sharkticon (G1)|Sharkticon]]s (7)
*[[Lightbright (G1)|Lightbright]] (13)
*[[Rum-Maj]] (31)
*[[Wreck-Gar (G1)|Wreck-Gar]] (32)
*? (33)
*[[Thundercracker (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Thundercracker]] (41)
*[[Centurion (IDW)|Centurion]] (54)
*[[Sideswipe (IDW)|Sideswipe]] (66)
*[[Slicer (Decepticon)|Slicer]] (67)

|h5=Others|c5=
*[[Livia]] (14)
*[[Buster (IDW)|Buster]] (42)
*[[Bob (IDW)|Bob]] (46)
*[[D.0.C.]] (48)
*''[[Unicron]]'' (52)
*[[Rom]] (63)
}}

==Quotes==
"Our job is to keep the '''peace.''' We only kill as the '''last option'''—when '''evil''' leaves us no choice." 
"'''Ha ha ha!''' Kid, I thought you were too '''serious'''—glad ta see a '''bleak''' sense of '''humor''' in ya."
:—'''Orion Pax''' and '''Kup'''

"This place is really popular, you know, '''Rummy-Cube,''' my love. But do you know '''why?''' Ask me why." 
"No." 
"It seems people are '''dying''' to get here!"
:—'''Wreck-Gar''' and '''Rum-Maj''' visit Little Cybertron's graveyard

"'''Winning?''' What does it '''mean?!''' Maybe there's no '''winning''', my dear, because the game doesn't '''end.''' Some '''pieces''' fall off the board, but new '''pink pegs''' get stuck in the car and we keep passing '''go''', keep collecting '''200 Shanix.'''" 
"Perhaps. Perhaps it '''is''' a victory when the '''game''' continues... '''regardless''' of the players."
:—'''Wreck-Gar''' and '''Rum-Maj'''

"'''Soundwave''' laid down his life so '''everybody''' could live. But for '''you'''... I think he'd understand if I made an '''exception.'''"
:—'''Buzzsaw''' attacks the poachers

'''Optimus Prime:''' "'''Find''' [Megatron]. But I want the '''opportunity''' for peace. We're fighting for the '''same thing,''' after all." 
'''Prowl:''' "He's '''nuts.'''" 
'''Bumblebee:''' "Heh. He's '''Optimus.'''"

"You '''know''' you saved the universe, right?" 
"Pfft. Not if you '''ask''' anyone." 
"Oh Primus. You're '''jealous''' that '''Optimus''' got all the credit." 
"Who, '''me?''' Jealous? It's '''okay.''' People will '''probably''' remember me. That's '''all''' I can ask for, I guess." 
:—'''Bumblebee''' and '''Starscream'''

"I was '''right''', you know. When it all comes down to it, everything is about '''resources'''... there is a finite amount of '''everything'''. Even '''identities'''. And I am no longer sure which version of '''myself''' was the '''real''' one." 
"They '''all''' were, Shockwave. All that was done to you, all that you did to yourself... all that you did to '''others.''' We are our '''actions'''... not our '''hopes.'''"
:—'''Shockwave''' and '''Prowl'''

"'''Today''', on his adopted world of '''Earth'''... we bury '''Optimus Prime'''. Not his '''body'''—that's gone. Not his '''spark'''—that belongs to '''Solus.''' We bury the '''idea''' of Optimus Prime. We was a warrior. A hero. A killer. A liar. '''Destruction''' was his company. Did he '''cause''' it—or prevent '''worse?''' The thing that made Optimus who he '''was'''... was that he '''asked''' those questions. Life is not '''simple''', and neither is '''death.''' We inter the '''idea''' of Optimus Prime into the '''soil''' of his '''adopted world'''... a world that has, in turn, adopted us '''all.''' 'Til all are one."
:—'''Windblade''' delivers a eulogy for Optimus Prime

"'''Freedom''' and unity (...) describe the same '''phenomenon.''' '''One''' cannot be free unless all are. And if '''all''' are '''free'''—they are as '''one.''' I fell short of '''achieving''' this... but it doesn't matter. The '''goal''' isn't important. The journey is. And it '''never''' ends."
:—'''Optimus Prime''''s final words

"Believing in the future means believing we can '''change.''' The '''story''' of that change, the story of becoming what we '''are'''—what we were '''meant''' to be... '''that''' is the true history of the '''world.''' And '''this''', children, is our future. This is '''our''' world."
:—'''Arcee''' signs off

==Notes==
===Continuity notes===
*This issue is the final comic in the [[IDW Generation 1 continuity]]. Following on from the events of [[Ceremony|''Unicron'' #6]], it serves as an epilogue to that story, to the ''Optimus Prime'' series and John Barber's seven-year ''Transformers'' run, and to the IDW universe as a whole. In terms of chronology, however, portions of [[How To Say Goodbye And Mean It: Part 2|''Lost Light'' #25]] take place in the far future, long after this issue.
*Scattered remarks made here and there over the last few years of IDW comics have implied a recontextualization of Arcee's origins from her [[Spotlight: Arcee|controversial ''Spotlight'' back in 2008]], but with this issue, Barber—working with Transformers fan Jenevieve Frank to address the subject sensitively and thoroughly—finally addresses the matter directly. In no uncertain terms, Arcee was (in her words) "forged male, which did not match [her] spark," and willingly agreed to the procedure Jhiaxus performed on her. Her erratic behavior following this was not the result of the transition itself, but the lack of aftercare Jhiaxus provided ("the Cybertronian equivalent" of "bad meds," Arcee and Marissa collectively conclude).
*Arcee also notes that [[Anode]] (a trans character featured in the pages of ''[[The Transformers: Lost Light|Lost Light]]'') offered to help her, only to vanish. Given that Anode only realized her trans identity after leaving Cybertron to escape the war, this means she must have met Arcee when she returned to Cybertron just prior to events shown in [[Dissolution Part 1: Some Other Cybertron|''Lost Light'' #1]], and her "disappearance" was her abduction to the future by [[Mortilus|the Necrobot]], seen in that same issue. The implication, then, is that the things Arcee discovered from Anode (like the fact she ''didn't'' have to have her [[CNA]] altered in order to transition) coupled with Anode's disappearance before she could help her triggered the rampage the already-unstable Arcee was on as ''Spotlight: Arcee'' began.
*Orion's first two flashbacks are the earliest points we have seen in his life in this continuity, prior to his previously-chronologically-earliest appearance in [[Chaos Theory Part 1|''The Transformers'' vol. 1 #22]]. The third also seems intended to be set before this issue, in his younger days before he became a police captain (Outback still calls him "rookie," and the narration implies it is before he addresses the Senate, as seen in [[Chaos Theory Part 2|''The Transformers'' vol. 1 #23]]), but see "Errors" below.
*Needlenose and Tracks were previously shown in business together selling Chic Chips before the war in [[The Transgressors|''The Transformers'' #44]].
*Following her acceptance into the ranks of the Torchbearers in ''Unicron'' #6, replacing the deceased [[Stormclash]], Slide is shown to have adopted their red-and-green color scheme. With Pyra ascending to the position of Mistress of Flame, Skyburst has become the new leader of the team, and Swift has joined them as the new sixth member and also taken their colors. Swift's not here for combining reasons, though; [[Conquerors Part 1: Aphelion|''The Transformers'' #46]] explained there are always six Torchbearers, representing the hexagonal lattice of [[Solus Prime]]'s [[Creation Lathe]].
*Orion's fourth flashback takes place after the various flashbacks we've seen throughout the ''Optimus Prime'' series, but before ''[[The Transformers: Autocracy|Autocracy]]'', and depicts Orion in his "angry and violent" phase that he fell into following the events seen in [[New Cybertron Part 5: Future Glories Lost|''Optimus Prime'' #5]].
*[[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Chromedome]] appears with Pax's unit in this flashback; presumably he's there because he's still partners with Prowl in the [[Iaconian Mechaforensic Division]] at this time, as seen in [[Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|''More than Meets the Eye'' #9]]-[[Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|11]]. Per those issues, his name at this time is "Tumbler."
*Process of elimination would indicate the block-colored sixth 'bot on Orion's team seen in this flashback is Hound, who was part of his unit in ''Autocracy'', but hasn't shown up in any of the other looks at the past in the ''Optimus Prime'' series. His cannon's on the wrong shoulder, though.
*This flashback sees Swindle mention a simultronic dealer named [[Marauder (G1)|Marauder]]. A 'bot by this name was previously referenced in [[Dissolution Part 3: A World Misplaced|''Lost Light'' #3]], one of the deceased Transformers whose essences were captured in one of the Necrobot's spark-flowers, whose death was apparently the work of Starscream.
*Orion's fifth flashback occurs between [[The Hunt for Soundwave|''Autocracy'' #3]] and [[Cause and Effect|#4]], but it retcons the precise circumstances of Orion and Megatron's meeting. Orion was not politely invited to meet with Megatron and given time to talk it over with his comrades; he was ''forced'' to do so by Decepticons who were holding Bumblebee hostage (with 'Bee even telling Orion not to go because it was a trap, versus his encouragement in his story) and had to go to the meeting right away.
*During the fifth flashback, Ironhide refers to the death of the Senate, as seen in [[Megatron Origin issue 4|''Megatron Origin'' #4]].
*Buzzsaw is defending elephants against poachers in Soundwave's memory because elephants were Soundwave's favourite Earth creatures, as he revealed in [[New Cybertron Part 4: Dance Among the Shadows|''Optimus Prime'' #4]].
*Captain of continuity to the very last, John Barber plugs one of the larger gaps in the IDW timeline with Orion's sixth flashback, which details how Megatron escaped captivity after he was imprisoned by the Autobots in [[Primacy issue 4|''Primacy'' #4]].
*Following his death in ''Unicron'' #6 and conspicuous absence from the gathering of the spirits of the dead seen in the same issue, Starscream is revealed to have persisted after death as a "ghost" who can only be seen by Bumblebee, in an inverse of their relationship for the last three years (spanning [[The Transgressors|''The Transformers'' vol. 2 #44]], though all of [[The Transformers: Till All Are One|''Till All Are One,'']] up to [[The Falling, Chapter 4: The Hallowing|''Optimus Prime'' #19]]). Exactly how Starscream has done this is left unsaid; perhaps his spirit has wound up in [[Infraspace]] like Bumblebee's did, given that the Talisman, which killed Starscream, showed the ability to project a 'bot's consciousness there in [[Ghost in the Machine (IDW)|''Revolutionaries'' #8]]. See also "Transformers references," below.
*Bumblebee is leaving to become the Transformers' diplomatic envoy to the Galactic Council. ''Lost Light'' #25 established that Prowl was reaching out to the Council to have them oversee Megatron's second trial, in the hope the Cybertronian race would finally be allowed to join. Sounds rather like he got his wish.
*Orion's seventh flashback showcases his tempestuous relationship with the Dinobots, which was the subject of ''[[The Transformers: Punishment]]''. Slug is correctly still referred to as "Slag" during this flashback, as it's set before he changed his name in [[No Exit: Dark Cybertron Chapter 6|''More than Meets the Eye'' #25]].
*One of the other writers competing with Thundercracker for his award is "Michael Costa," a tip of the hat to former IDW ''Transformers'' writer [[Mike Costa]], who rehabilitated Thundercracker all the way back in 2010's [[Things Fall Apart, Part 3: "Seasons in Flight"|''Transformers'' vol. 1 #4]] by establishing him as a fan of Earth television, thereby setting him on the path to this moment.
*Thundercracker was established to be a fan of Karen Fishook (who played the mother of the titular character of his favorite TV show ''[[Nurse Whitney]]'') in [[Starscream: The Movie (comic)|the 2018 ''Optimus Prime'' annual]].
*Orion's eighth flashback occurs during his solo space travels, somewhere between ''[[Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime]]'' and [[Syndromica (1)|''Robots in Disguise'' #6]].
*Orion's ninth flashback falls somewhere between the end of ''[[Revolution]]'' and the start of ''Optimus Prime''.
*It's not called out by name, but Shockwave appears to have been imprisoned on ''[[Nemesis (G1)|Lemuria]]'', a.k.a the former Decepticon spacecraft ''Nemesis'', which was being used as an underwater headquarters by G.I. Joe in [[G.I. Joe vol. 5|''G.I. Joe'' vol. 5]] following its capture by the [[Earth Defense Command]] in [[White Heat|''The Transformers'' vol. 2 #57]].
*The imprisoned Shockwave has been strung up with his arms and legs removed, a plight that was also suffered by [[Getaway]] in [[Speak, Memory! (Part 2)|''More than Meets the Eye'' #49]]. Perhaps this is standard Cybertronian protocol for exceptionally dangerous prisoners. Additionally, the perspective and framing of Shockwave's dismembered body calls back to how he was similarly shown in [[Maximum Dinobots issue 2|''Maximum Dinobots'' #2]], and [[Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 3|''Last Stand of the Wreckers'' #3]], and [[Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|''More Than Meets The Eye'' #11]]. In each of those other circumstances, Shockwave was being rebuilt and getting a new chance to further his schemes; here, he has been taken apart most likely for keeps.
*Orion's tenth and final flashback is set during the events of [[Unicron issue 5|''Unicron'' #5]], and shows his decision to remove his faceplate prior to the end of that issue, which went unexplained at the time.
*Windblade begins Optimus's funeral by saying "Loss of life is only a tragedy if it is without..." before stopping herself. The next word is "purpose"; this rite was previously used by [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]] at the funeral of [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (G1)|Fastback]] in [[Megatron Origin issue 3|''Megatron Origin'' #3]], and by Optimus at the funeral of Sideswipe in [[The Dead Come Home, Part 1 (of 2)|''Optimus Prime'' #13]].
* The Elonian child on the final page appears to be the same young girl who appeared in ''Unicron'' issues [[Our Darkest|#1]] and [[Ceremony|#6]].
*And so the question of whether or not Optimus Prime truly is The Arisen is... left ambiguous. He ''might'' be the reincarnation of the Thirteenth Prime... or he might not. In the end, it doesn't matter; what matters is what he used the story that he was to accomplish.

===Transformers references===
*The text on the first page of this issue is taken from the [[bio]] included with the [[Tech Spec]]s of the [[Optimus Prime (G1)/toys#Generation 1|original Optimus Prime toy]]. The "line graph" below it is based on (but is not an exact replica of) Prime's original Tech Spec graph itself.
*The little robot who transforms into the blackmith's medical equipment (apparently some kind of magnifying lens) is [[Scrounge (G1)|Scrounge]], a comic-original character who appeared in [[The Smelting Pool!|issue #17]] of the [[The Transformers (Marvel comic)|original Marvel ''Transformers'' comic]]. He's made several silent cameo guest-spots dotted across IDW history that, like this one, have typically depicted him in unfortunate situations, but this is the first time we've seen his alternate mode. In the Marvel comic, he transformed into a wheel, and in homage to that, he's here seen chasing after a circular piece of his own [[kibble]] that's popped off and is rolling away.
*The freshly-forged Orion Pax's appearance is mostly based on his original look from the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|Generation 1 cartoon]] episode "[[War Dawn (episode)|War Dawn]]" with a few embellishments, like the angular protruding windshield-chest reminiscent of the design created by [[Guido Guidi]] for his appearance in "[[Spotlight: Blurr]]."
*Multiple human workers seen throughout this issue are wearing tan shirt, blue pants, and yellow helmet and boots worn by [[Spike Witwicky (G1)|Spike Witwicky]] and [[Sparkplug Witwicky|his father]] in the Generation 1 cartoon.
*On page 3, a sign is shown advertising [[energon goodie]]s as they appeared in ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]'', as wafer-like "sticks of gum" kept in a square container.
*Orion Pax notes that, as a truck, Functionism permitted him to have become "a scientist, a librarian, or a dockworker" instead of a police officer. Orion was a dockworker in the Generation 1 cartoon, and a librarian in both [[Dreamwave Productions]]' [[Dreamwave Generation One continuity|comic book continuity]] and the [[Aligned continuity family]]; "scientist" was presented as a possible job he could have had in Optimus Prime's original Generation 1 profile, were he not leader of the Autobots instead.
*Swindle refers to a 'bot named "[[Shadowhawk]]," which was the Japanese-market name for [[Divebomb (Energon)|''Energon'' Divebomb]].
*Starscream surviving death as a ghost is, of course, a concept that originated in the Generation 1 cartoon episode "[[Starscream's Ghost]]," and has seen a lot of play in subsequent media, particularly in Japan. If the Infraspace explanation isn't the case, perhaps IDW's Starscream really does just have the same "indestructible spark" as the original, which the [[Beast Wars: Transformers (cartoon)|''Beast Wars'' cartoon]] credited with his unique ability to persist after death.
*Midnight Express remarks that he likes the cold, an aspect of his personality derived from his original Japanaese characterization. This trait survived into the English-language bio included with Hasbro's release of the figure, but not into the English-dubbed version of the [[Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2001 cartoon)|''Robots in Disguise'' cartoon]].
*Optimus drops [[Furmanism#IT NEVER ENDS|a famous climactic Furmanism]] as the final line of his narration.
*Arcee serving as a teacher for the next generation of Cybertronians alludes to her [[Arcee (Animated)|''Animated'' counterpart]], who was a teacher before the war.
*Several young members of that next generation appear along with the young Sideswipe on the final page. Apart from one who is drawn to look like the deceased [[Wheeljack (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Wheeljack]] (and coloured like Wheeljack's [[Action Master]] redeco, [[Slicer (Decepticon)|Slicer]]), the rest appear to be generics who colourist Josh Burcham has given the color schemes of other characters. One has been colored like [[Sideways (Armada)|''Armada'' Sideways]], and another like [[Turbofire]].

===Real-life references===
*Wreck-Gar uses a few board game metaphors:
**"...you know, Rummy-cube, my love..."-a slight allusion to Rummikub, a tile adaptation of set-collecting games like Rummy.
**"New pink pegs get stuck in the car"—a gameplay mechanic from {{w|The Game of Life}}.
**"We keep passing Go, keep collecting 200 [[Shanix]]"—an allusion to passing Go and collecting $200 in [[Monopoly]]
*Thundercracker has titled his Chuckles movie ''Last Laugh,'' which was the name of the real-life hardcover collection of the IDW ''G.I. Joe'' comic books telling the story that T.C. has based his screenplay on.
*Karen Fishook starts to read the result of the award ceremony by saying "And the winner is..." before correcting herself and saying "And the award goes to..." Her first impulse is how they used to announce the Oscars, before it was changed in 1989 to the latter (or rather, to "And the ''Oscar'' goes to...").
*The imagery of Bumblebee walking on a beach receiving guidance from someone who cannot be seen, showing only one set of footprints in the sand, is similar to common inspirational "--and that's when I carried you" allusions to [[Jesus]].

===Errors===
*With regard to Orion's third flashback, it shows Ravage drawing graffiti of the Decepticon symbol when Orion was still a rookie beat cop... but [[Chaos Theory Part 1|''The Transformers'' vol. 1 #22]] showed that Orion had become captain of the Rodion precinct before Megatron ever thought the symbol up.

===Other trivia===
*Originally solicited for release in October 2018, this issue was held back until late November to ensure that it was released after the delayed ''Unicron'' #6.
*This issue features 24 story pages instead of the usual 20. The remaining four pages of the comic are taken up by the introductory "Tech Specs" page (described above), two bookend pages that simply read "The Beginning" and "The End," and a farewell letter from writer John Barber reminiscing about his time on IDW's ''Transformers'' comics and thanking his fellow creators.

===Covers (3)===
*'''Cover A:''' A huge cast group shot surrounding a portrait of Optimus Prime, by [[Kei Zama]] and [[Josh Burcham]]; an homage to Marvel Comics' 25th anniversary covers from 1986. [[Heavy Traffic!|Marvel's ''The Transformers'' #22]] featured one of these covers, but the note on the credits page that it is drawn "after {{w|Walt Simonson|Walter Simonson}}" indicates it's specifically evoking the cover of [https://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Thor_Vol_1_373 ''Thor'' #373] and Simsonson's regal depiction of the God of Thunder.
*'''Cover B:''' Optimus Prime, with other members in the pieces of a shattered Autobot symbol behind him, by [[Casey Coller]] and [[John-Paul Bove]]
*'''Retailer incentive cover:''' ''Robots in Disguise'' artist [[Andrew Griffith]] returns to draw key cast members from Barber's run one last time
<gallery>
File:OP25 cvrA.jpg|
File:OP25 cvrB.jpg|
File:OP25 cvrRI.jpg|
</gallery>

===Advertisements===
*''[[Sonic the Hedgehog|Team Sonic Racing]]'' one-shot

==External links==
*[http://www.adventuresinpoortaste.com/2018/11/16/exclusive-idw-preview-optimus-prime-25/ Preview]

[[Category:Optimus Prime issues]]

Crucible (Part 3): Farsickness

2018-09-24T19:26:34Z

Stryyder: /* Errors */

{{Comicstory
|seriesissue=''[[The Transformers: Lost Light|The Transformers: Lost Light]]'' #21
|prev=Crucible (Part 2): Lūstrāre
|next=Crucible (Part 4): The Return of the King
|image=LL21_cvrA.jpg
|title="Crucible (Part 3): Farsickness"
|caption=''Polished'' Surprise!
|publisher=[[IDW Publishing]]
|date=[[July 25]], 2018
|coverdate=Early July, 2018
|written by=[[James Roberts]]
|art by=[[Jack Lawrence]]
|colors by=[[Joana Lafuente]]
|letters by=[[Tom B. Long]]
|editor=[[David Mariotte]]
|continuity=[[IDW Generation 1 continuity|IDW continuity]]
|chronology=[[IDW timeline|Current era]]
}}
'''Back aboard the ''Lost Light'', our heroes are caught up in the Grand Architect's mad plan to save the universe.'''

==Synopsis==
As space itself above [[Mederi]] splits open into a crackling rift, [[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rodimus]] takes the recaptured ''[[Lost Light]]'' down to the planet to collect the rest of his crew and the [[Scavenger (group)|Scavengers]] so they can all make a quick escape. As the convalescing former mutineers, now cured of their [[sparkeater (creature)|sparkeater]] mutation, are loaded aboard, [[Perceptor (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Perceptor]] apologizes to Rodimus for everything that has happened, and Rodimus happily forgives them all. Even Mederi's alien telepaths are brought onto the ship, but as they are being removed from Ward Zero, a [[geobomb]] is suddenly teleported into the midst of the room, inspiring everyone to pick up the pace. Once everyone is aboard, the ''Lost Light'' blasts off, but it doesn't get far before pilot [[Crankcase (G1)|Crankcase]] finds that, even with the engines at full force, the ship cannot escape the pull of the rift...

[[File:LL21 GA Worldsweeper Fleet.jpg|left|250px|thumb|Alright, everyone remember where we parked.]]
On the other side of the rift, the [[Worldsweeper]] [[Phantom Fleet|fleet]] of the [[Grand Architect]] hovers in formation. Aboard the flagship, [[Flame (Marvel)|Flame]] works upon the unseen Architect's body, reconstructing it and offering to adjust his vocal synthesizer. [[Scorponok (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Scorponok]] cuts into the conversation via radio, alerting the Architect to the impending detonation of the geobomb, which will shunt Mederi through the rift. The Architect's curt response, and the fact that [[Tyrest (G1)|Tyrest]]'s scanner sweeps have as yet detected no signs of the mysterious enemy whose coming the Architect is preparing for, only encourage Scorponok to question his loyalties...

The ''Lost Light'' emerges from the rift into what the ship's navigation computer identifies as the [[Benzene Cluster]]. But instead of the planets that ''normally'' occupy the cluster, there are five multi-coloured duplicates of [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] itself, which [[Nautica (G1)|Nautica]] recognizes as the same sight [[Skids (G1)|Skids]] saw years before, when he stepped through Tyrest's portal on [[Moonbase One|Luna 1]]. With the ship's engines drained by the transit through the rift, Crankcase sets the ''Lost Light'' down on one of the Cybertrons, which [[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]] is able to identify as a perfect replica of the ancient Cybertron of his time, even though [[Anode]] and [[Swerve (G1)|Swerve]]'s metallurgical skills confirm it to be a recent creation. The team barely has time to take in this strange new situation they find themselves in before a fleet of [[Black Block Consortia]] ships land nearby, and thousands of Consortia troopers surround them. The situation only keeps escalating as the Grand Architect's flagship appears overhead, shining a spotlight on them. Over a speaker, the Architect introduces himself to the group, and, believing what [[Getaway]] told him about Rodimus coming to stop his plans, order the Consortia to kill them. Nautica is able to give him pause by speaking aloud the symbol of the [[Knights of Cybertron]] that the Architect uses as his insignia; intrigued, the Architect invites Rodimus to choose a small delegation to come aboard his ship and talk. Suddenly, the long-silent [[Magnificence]] pipes up, listing Rodimus, [[Rung (G1)|Rung]], [[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]], and [[Tailgate (G1)|Tailgate]] as the necessary choices...but Rodimus isn't having it; in an impassioned speech that sees him list of all the incredible achievements the crew have made on their quest, he refuses to break his team up ever again, and vows to defeat the Architect if he turns things into a fight. After a moment's pause, the Architect invites the whole team aboard.

Scorponok is furious that the Architect has allowed the ''Lost Light''ers to live, which proves to be the last straw. Having only ever stayed with the Architect make use of his resources for his now-failed [[Firstborn|Project: Firstborn]], he is tired of all the secrets and mystery. The Architect's identity, it transpires, is unknown even to Scorponok and Tyrest—but while Tyrest is happy to go along with his plans, now his loyal follower after the Architect saved his life following his escape on Luna 1, Scorponok isn't so trusting. He contacts two of the Architect's ''other'' recruits, [[Froid]] and [[Sunder (G1)|Sunder]], and instructs them to go ahead with a plan they have prearranged: to have Sunder use his remote [[mnemosurgery]] powers to read the Architect's mind and discover his true identity.

The ''Lost Light'' sets down in the flagship's docking bay, and as the crew waits, the Magnificence around [[Nickel]]'s neck becomes a topic of conversation. Though nobody else hears anything, Rung believes that he hears the Magnificence speak his name—and when he leans into to look the device in its eyeball, he suddenly, involuntarily transforms, even "speaking" the transformation noise as he does so! Looking down at Rung's still-mysterious alternate mode, Swerve and [[Rewind (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rewind]] muse how it makes them feel "young"... but that longstanding puzzle suddenly takes a back seat when everyone's attention is drawn away by the sight of Mederi bursting through the rift, which seals up behind it. A moment later, Froid and Sunder are trooped into the hangar in handcuffs, leading Rodimus to realize they're all in a giant cell. Still, it gives them an opportunity to interrogate the two villains, and Froid is happy to tell them everything he knows. The Architect, Froid relates, created biomechanical constructs to secretly infiltrate and take over the Black Block Consortia, pitting them against the [[Galactic Council]] to sweep the Benzene Cluster clean of much of its population and planets, making room for the replicas of Cybertron, which he created using a giant planet-sized mould, and which together form a weapon known as the "[[God Gun]]." Rewind chimes in to explain how Cybertron legend claims that the planet itself could be used as a weapon, redirecting starlight into an energy beam, but that the war did too much damage to the real thing for the theory to ever be confirmed, hence the Architect's need for copies of ''ancient'' Cybertron—and ''five'' Cybertrons combined can create a beam powerful enough to drill into ''another universe''. But both the threat the Architect has created this weapon to fight, and the identity of the Architect himself, remain mysteries; the Architect is so powerful that he was able to expel the probing Sunder from his mind before he could learn them, stripping him of his mnemosurgical powers in the process.

[[File:LL21 God Gun.jpg|right|300px|thumb|"[[Obi-Wan Kenobi|That's no moon... that's five copies of the same planet!]]"]]
Scorponok activates the God Gun, opening a portal to a neighboring universe, but there's ''still'' no sign of the mystery threat. Via radio, the Architect reassures Scorponok their enemy ''will'' appear soon; millions of years ago, the Architect was sent through time, through the [[Warren]], to ''this moment'', where he ''saw'' the enemy, before fleeing back into the past to prepare for his coming. The Architect intends to banish the enemy through the portal, into another universe, thereby saving this one... but when Tyrest detects a sudden massive flare of energy on the ''other side'' of the portal, Scorponok realizes with horror what has happened: the enemy was in the next universe the whole time, and the Architect's portal has only provided him with the means to cross over into this one! Scorponok is in the middle of roaring into his radio in outrage when the door behind him bursts open; the Grand Architect has ''not'' taken kindly to Scorponok's plotting with Froid and Sunder, and stabs him through the back with a very familiar chainsaw-hand. Scorponok falls dead at the feet of the Architect... a.k.a. [[Pharma (G1)|Pharma]]!

As Rodimus and the others watch, a huge fleet of ships comes flying through the portal with a replica of the ''Lost Light'' at its head. Rodimus and [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ultra Magnus]]'s communicators chime simultaneously, and a transmission from the bridge of the duplicate ship comes through. A transmission... from [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]]!!

==Featured characters==
Characters in ''italic text'' appear only in flashbacks. 
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
{{{!}}border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="background:transparent"
{{!}}-
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Swerve (G1)|Swerve]] (1)
*[[Velocity (G1)|Velocity]] (2)
*[[Brainstorm (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Brainstorm]] (5)
*[[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rodimus]] (6)
*[[Perceptor (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Perceptor]] (7)
*[[Riptide (G1)|Riptide]] (8)
*[[Hound (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hound]] (9)
*[[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]] (10)
*[[First Aid (G1)|First Aid]] (12)
*[[Rewind (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rewind]] (15)
*[[Rung (G1)|Rung]] (16)
*[[Drift (G1)|Drift]] (18)
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Nautica (G1)|Nautica]] (20)
*[[Tailgate (G1)|Tailgate]] (22)
*[[Grimlock (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Grimlock]] (23)
*[[Whirl (G1)|Whirl]] (25)
*[[Thunder Clash|Thunderclash]] (26)
*[[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Chromedome]] (28)
*[[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ultra Magnus]] (32)
*[[Sunder (G1)|Sunder]] (37)
*[[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]] (39)
{{!}}}
|c2=
*[[Misfire (G1)|Misfire]] (3)
*[[Spinister (G1)|Spinister]] (14)
*[[Crankcase (G1)|Crankcase]] (17)
*[[Krok (G1)|Krok]] (24)
*[[Fulcrum]] (29)
*[[Nickel]] (31)
*[[Scorponok (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Scorponok]] (34)

|c4=
*[[Wipe-Out]] (4)
*Alien telepaths (11)
*[[Roller (IDW)|Roller]] (13)
*[[Anode]] (19)
*[[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]] (21)
*[[Lug (IDW)|Lug]] (27)
*[[Flame (Marvel)|Flame]] (32)
*[[Grand Architect]]/[[Pharma (G1)|Pharma]] (33)
*[[Tyrest (G1)|Tyrest]] (35)
*[[Black Block Consortia]] troops (36)
*[[Froid]] (38)
}}

==Quotes==
"Our navicomp doesn't know its ass from its elbow. It's not been the same since Whirl spilt... god, what was it? Magnus! What did Whirl spill on the navicomp?" 
"Tailgate."
:—'''Rodimus''' and '''Ultra Magnus'''

"A new place, a new mystery, random fragments of information... in thirty seconds' time, we'll be fighting for our lives." 
"What makes you say that?" 
"S'what '''always''' happens!"
:—'''Misfire''' and '''Chromedome'''

"Getaway was right." 
"'''So''' not the best way to start a conversation."
:—The '''Grand Architect''' and '''Rodimus'''

"This is not the time to try and split us up. Do you have '''any''' idea what we've been through together? What we've '''achieved?''' We've seen off a '''Phase Sixer''', cured an '''army''' of sparkeaters, survived a mutiny, traveled in time, gatecrashed a universe, and saved '''half our race.''' (...) We've liberated planets, defeated the '''D.J.D.''', found Luna 1 '''and''' the Necrobot, rescued '''two''' Metrotitans, been '''erased from existence''', and '''stolen a moon'''... and a few hours ago, we '''died''' and '''broke heaven.''' The key word is '''we'''. This isn't about '''Team Rodimus'''. This is about Team Magnus. It's about Team Nautica. Team Anode. Team Skids. Team Nightbeat. Hell, it's even about '''Team Whirl.''' So if 'the Grand Architect' turns out to be nothing more than the latest in a long line of '''nobodies''' trying to '''prove a point'''—another sad little trumped-up tyrant who throws a '''hissy fit''' whenever the world won't listen—then maybe, just maybe, Getaway '''was''' right. Because if you're stupid enough to turn this into '''us''' versus '''you''', then guess what? We'll win. '''We've got form.'''"
:—'''Rodimus''' addresses the Grand Architect

"Exaggeration is a form of '''conversational fraud.''' A colleague of mine used to exaggerate frequently. Between our first meeting and his request for an urgent transfer, he must have exaggerated... well... it must have been four or five times."
:—'''Ultra Magnus'''

"Were you expecting someone else?"
:—'''Megatron''' makes his big return

==Notes==
===Continuity notes===
*First Aid refers to Misfire as "Flyhigh," which we learned was his previous name back in [[Kill All 'Cons|issue #15]].
*Rewind doesn't know what the geobomb is when it appears, but Rung is able to recognize it, because he saw one up close back in [[The Dying of the Light Part 6: Do Not Go Gentle|''More than Meets the Eye'' #55]].
*Rodimus refers to the group as the "Crusadercons", a name Swerve proposed for the ''Lost Light'' crew ''waaaaay'' back in [[Liars, A to D Part 2: Hangers On|''More than Meets the Eye'' #2]].
*The Benzene Cluster, it turns out, is the end of a spiritual leyline that the ''Lost Light'' crew have been travelling along for the whole of their journey. Drift lists the planets positioned along it as including [[Deimus]] (visited very early on the quest, back in ''[[The Waiting Game|Spotlight: Hoist]]''), [[Theophany]] (the [[Primus: You, Me, and Other Revelations|2012 ''More than Meets the Eye'' annual]]), [[Troja Major]] ([[An Axe to Break the Ice|issue #8]]-[[Chasing the Infinite|9]]), and Mederi.
*Drift also notes that space "frays" at the end of the leyline; perhaps that's why one species of aliens native to Benzene, first mentioned in [[The Plotters' Club (Part 2): Filling in the Blanks|issue #11]], are called the [[Fraynian]]s, from the planet [[Frayus]]. As Tyrest did last issue, Drift refers to this frayed space as "threadbare"; "threadbare space" was one of the key phrases Drift saw in his vision in [[Dissolution Part 1: Some Other Cybertron|issue #1]].
*As Nautica (and a footnote) remind us, the five multi-colored Cybertrons were first glimpsed by [[Skids (G1)|Skids]] back in [[Remain in Light 5 of 5: This Calamitous Life|''More than Meets the Eye'' #21]]. Cyclonus recognizes them as copies of the ancient Cybertron of his time, which Froid explains were created using a "hollow planet—a giant mold." That mold is obviously [[Necroworld]], which Rung and [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] discovered matched the shape of ancient Cybertron back in ''More than Meets the Eye'' #55. The implication, then, is that Necroworld was created using Cybertron as a base, rather than Cybertron having been created from it, as Rung assumed at the time.
*Rodimus lists of the crew's accomplishments as:
**"Seen off a [[Phase Sixer]]" ([[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]], in [[Under Cold Blue Stars|''More than Meets the Eye'' #15]])
**"Cured an army of sparkeaters" (last issue)
**"Survived a mutiny" ([[The Dying of the Light|''More than Meets the Eye'' #50-55]])
**"Traveled in time" ([[Elegant Chaos Part 1: All Our Parlous Yesterdays|''More than Meets the Eye'' #36]]-[[Elegant Chaos Part 3: Predestination: An Expert's Guide|38]])
**"Gatecrashed a universe" ([[Dissolution Part 1: Some Other Cybertron|''Lost Light'' #1]]-[[Dissolution Part 6: This Machine Kills Fascists|6]])
**"Saved half our race" ([[Remain in Light|''More than Meets the Eye'' #17-21]])
**"Liberated planets" (''More than Meets the Eye'' #50, for example)
**"Defeated the DJD" (''More than Meets the Eye'' #55)
**"Found Luna 1 and the Necrobot" (''More than Meets the Eye'' #17 and [[The Not Knowing|#44]])
**"Rescued two Metrotitans" ([[Metrotitan (Zone)|Metrotitan]] in the 2012 annual, and [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] in [[Burning Bright: Dark Cybertron Chapter 8|''More than Meets the Eye'' #26]], but see "Errors")
**"Been erased from existence" ([[Twenty Plus One|''More than Meets the Eye'' #31]])
**"Stolen a moon" ([[Dissolution Part 5: Modes of Production|''Lost Light'' #5]])
**"Died and broke heaven" ([[The Everlasting Voices (1): Metastasis|''Lost Light'' #16]]-[[The Everlasting Voices (3): You Are Here|18]])
*Implied in issue #15, Scorponok now confirms outright that the Firstborn project was something he pursued on his own initiative, independent of the Grand Architect's ambitions.
*Tyrest relates his escape from incarceration via teleporter, which occurred in the [[The Sound of Breaking Glass|''More than Meets the Eye'' #21 backup story]].
** Also, Tyrest notes he wound up near Luna-1's engines, the same ones build around a giant version of the Knight symbol. Wonder what that's all about.
*The Grand Architect repaired Tyrest's mind, and so the self-inflicted drill-hole on his forehead that made him go funny is now gone. (For some reason, his projected image still sported it in [[Crucible (Part 1): A Dance Before Dying|issue #19]].)
*The Grand Architect's infiltrators are biomechs, which Froid describes as "soft on the outside, machine on the inside". Presumably, these would be the end result of all those mysterious experiments on mixing organics and technology that have been showing up since allll the way back in ''[[Rules of Disengagement (issue)|More Than Meets The Eye #7]]''.
*The Grand Architect is... Pharma?? This turncoat Autobot was last seen (chronologically speaking) in ''More than Meets the Eye'' #21, in which he died, but had his corpse pulled through Tyrest's portal. His return was foreshadowed by an appearance in Drift's vision in ''Lost Light'' #1, but ssssomething doesn't add up here. Pharma was just a regular, loyal Autobot until only about a decade ago, when he fell under the [[Decepticon Justice Division|DJD]]'s thumb while on [[Messatine]], but the Grand Architect has been operating in the galaxy for centuries. Now, this and various other discrepancies (Pharma recovering from his apparent death quick enough to find and repair Tyrest not long after; his lack of familiarity with Luna 1's technology back in "[[Remain in Light]]" despite the moon bearing the Architect's insignia; Pharma's previously-displayed fear and hatred of Decepticons compared to the gleeful ease with which he takes out Scorponok) can be reconciled by the fact that [[time travel]] is explicitly involved here, given Pharma's claims about the Warren sending him through time (is that what happened when he was pulled through the portal?)...but we're pretty sure there's another shoe waiting to drop here...
*Megatron was last seen in ''Lost Light'' #6, when he was left stranded in the Functionist Universe thanks to [[Terminus (G1)|Terminus]] misleading him. Is ''he'' the monster the Grand Architect fears? He's wearing his [[fusion cannon]] again... and his hand ''is'' just ''ever-so-strategically'' positioned to cover his chest, so we can't see if he's still wearing his Autobot insignia...

===Transformers references===
*Continuing a trend of recent issues to use [[Unicron]]-related dialogue cribbed from ''[[The Transformers: The Movie]]'', Crankcase cries out "We're being sucked into it!" as the ''Lost Light'' is pulled through the rift, a line spoken by [[Bumblebee (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Bumblebee]] in the film when he and [[Spike Witwicky (G1)/Generation 1 cartoon continuity|Spike]] were consumed by the monster planet.
*Megatron's fusion cannon design is very similar to the one belonging to [[Megatron (Animated)|the ''Animated'' version of the character]]. The reason for its angular appearance is revealed in the next issue.

===Real world references===
*The title of this issue, "Farsickness," is a condition that is the opposite of homesickness, a longing for far-off places.
*During his speech (quoted above), Rodimus drops the phrase "the world won't listen," an allusion to {{w|The World Won't Listen|The Smiths' album of the same name}}.

===Errors===
*While listing off the crew's accomplishments on page 10, Rodimus refers to "two Metrotitans." This ''was'' the name by which the giant [[cityformer]]s were introduced in the 2012 ''More than Meets the Eye'' annual, but ever since then, every single other IDW story has referred to them only as "[[Titan (IDW)|Titans]]," with "Metrotitan" being repositioned as the name of the [[Metrotitan (Zone)|''individual Titan'']] the crew rescued in that story.
*On page 11, panel 7, Scorponok uses the phrase "tow the line." That ought to be "to'''''e''''' the line."
*On page 16, panel 3, there's a thin orange circle behind "cosmic Pathblaster"-Cybertron. It looks like this was supposed to be a star (based on the text about positioning Cybertron a certain distance from it, and by the star behind the five-Cybertron God Gun at the bottom of the page) but it hasn't been colored in, leaving only an outline.
*On the final page, Megatron's "Fusion Cannon" (revealed next issue to be a portable med-kit) is drawn as a squared 4 sided cannon. In subsequent issues it is instead drawn as a triangular 3 sided cannon.

===Other trivia===
*Originally solicited for release in early July 2018, as the first of ''two'' issues of ''Lost Light'' that were supposed to be released that month, this issue arrived a bit late, only coming out in the ''last'' week of July, bumping the second July issue into August. But on the plus side, it's only two weeks after issue #20, and only three weeks after #19, making a total of ''three'' issues of ''Lost Light'' released in July—even if they ''were'' all late!

===Soundtrack===
*"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RB-RcX5DS5A The Scientist]" by {{w|Coldplay}}
*"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=E5H8DwJI0uA Sons and Daughters]" by {{w|The Decemberists}}

===Covers (3)===
*'''Cover A:''' Everyone's very shocked, by [[Jack Lawrence]] and [[Joana Lafuente]]
*'''Cover B:''' Our heroes, by [[Geoff Senior]] and [[Josh Burcham]]
*'''Retailer incentive cover:''' Lawrence's black and white lineart from Cover A
<gallery>
File:LL21 cvrA.jpg|
File:LL21 cvrB.jpg|
File:LL21 cvrRI.jpg|
</gallery>

===Advertisements===
*''Lost Light'' #22
*''[[Transformers: Unicron]]''
*''[[Transformers vs. Visionaries]]'' TPB
*''[[G.I. Joe (franchise)|G.I. Joe]] vs. The Six Million Dollar Man'' TPB
*''[[Sonic the Hedgehog]]'' #7
*''The Comic Book History of Comics: Comics For All'' TPB
*''[[Star Trek]]: The Next Generation: Terra Icognita''
*[[Unicron issue 1|''Transformers: Unicron'' #1]]

==External links==
*[https://graphicpolicy.com/2018/07/24/preview-transformers-lost-light-21/ Preview]

[[Category: Lost Light issues]]

All Hail Optimus Part 4: It's Beginning To And Back Again

2018-08-27T21:10:53Z

Stryyder: /* Errors */

{{Comicstory
|series=exrid|issueno=53
|prev=All Hail Optimus Part 3: The Medium and the Message
|next=All Hail Optimus Part 5: As Above...So Below
|caption=
|image=TF53 regcvr.jpg
|title="All Hail Optimus Part 4: It's Beginning To And Back Again"
|publisher=[[IDW Publishing]]
|date=[[May 25]], [[2016]]
|coverdate=May 2016
|written by=[[John Barber]]
|art by=[[Priscilla Tramontano]]
|colors=[[Josh Burcham]]
|letters by=[[Tom B. Long]]
|editor=[[Carlos Guzman]]
|continuity=[[IDW Generation 1 continuity|IDW continuity]]
|chronology=[[IDW timeline|Current era]]
}}

'''The allied forces of Optimus Prime's Autobots and Soundwave's Decepticons launch an attack on Galvatron, who counters by revealing the true power of the Onyx source code.'''

==Synopsis==
Tensions run high as [[Soundwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Soundwave]]'s [[Decepticon]]s arrive at the [[Autobot]] camp in [[Monument Valley]] to help make plans for an attack on the ''[[Nemesis (G1)|Nemesis]]'' beneath the ocean. Even [[D.0.C.]] and [[Buster (IDW)|Buster]] struggle to get along with [[Bob (IDW)|Bob]], leading [[Thundercracker (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Thundercracker]] and [[Sunstreaker (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Sunstreaker]] to start arguing, until [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Optimus Prime]] steps in to try and calm them. [[Arcee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Arcee]] then speaks up, insisting ''she'' will be the one to lead the attack on the ''Nemesis'' rather than than Optimus; though the grimace that crosses her face as Prime talks about the righteousness of his cause suggests her belief in him is less than one hundred percent, she claims he Optimus is "too valuable" to risk. [[Aileron]] objects, but Arcee quickly shuts her down, and orders her to stay behind as well. While Optimus steps away to talk with [[Jetfire (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jetfire]] about scanning the valley for something important which he senses is hidden there, Arcee retires to the med-bay to talk to the comatose [[Sideswipe (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Sideswipe]]. Presently, she is joined by Sunstreaker, who bequeaths her his brother's jetpack—though she doesn't show a lot of gratitude, and believes she was entitled to it anyway.

Unfortunately for Prime and Soundwave's forces, they are being spied on by Galvatron, using his access to the [[Onyx]] source code to see all. With everything going according to his plan, and even [[G.B. Blackrock|Blackrock]] reluctantly on his side in the name of self-presevation, Galvatron anonymously sends the footage of the Autobot camp to the [[Earth Defense Command]], who immediately mobilize their troops to attack Monument Valley.

[[File:Transformers53-Galvatronus.jpg|thumb|left|250px|]]
The Autobots and Decepticons are flown over the ocean by [[Sky Lynx (G1)|Sky Lynx]], then all dive into the water for a hard-and-fast attack on the submerged ''Nemesis''. Alas, the Decepticons are ready for them, and counterattack with the additional might of a platoon of Blackrock's [[Seeker clone]] combiners. Fortunately, the Autobots have combiners of their own, and [[Victorion]] and [[Superion (G1)|Superion]] soon prove able to stand up to the human-made robots. Even this does not faze Galvatron, however; the Decepticon leader has a secret weapon waiting to deploy. At last, he reveals to Blackrock exactly what his spreading the Onyx source code around the world in ordinary human devices has wrought—the source code is derived from the [[Enigma of Combination]], the energy of which now spans the entire globe, turning Earth ''itself'' into a giant Enigma that Galvatron can manipulate at will. For his first demonstration of the power he now commands, Galvatron turns the energy of the Enigma on [[Dreadwing (G2)|Dreadwing]], [[Mindwipe (G1)|Mindwipe]], [[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]], [[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]], and [[Acid Storm (G1)|Acid Storm]], merging them into a combiner he names [[Galvatronus (Generations)|Galvatronus]]! [[Skywarp (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Skywarp]], however, is aghast, considering this a desecration of everything Galvatron has preached thus far about Cybertronian purity.

[[File:AHM-SkyReign.jpg|upright=1.3|thumb|right|]]
Back in Monument Valley, Optimus, Soundwave, Aileron, and [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]] watch transmissions of the battle in horror, and are about to go to their comrades' aid when the [[space bridge]] suddenly activates. News reporters [[Circuit (G1)|Circuit]] and [[Longtooth]] emerge, already broadcasting live back to [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], where [[Starscream (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Starscream]] watches in delight as they corner Optimus and start questioning him about his recent actions. Starscream's glee turns to outright rapture as the Earth Defense Command suddenly descend on the valley, opening fire and proving to all viewing that even the humans of Earth disagree with Optimus's decisions! While Buster and D.0.C. defend Bob after his attempt to attack on the planes goes awry, Optimus refuses to allow Soundwave to fight back in hopes of proving their good faith—a course of action that the spectral [[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]] tells Starscream will only prove Optimus's dedication and heroism to the audience. Starscream isn't worried, however: if Prime doesn't fight back, he'll ''die'', which suits Starscream just fine... and if Prime gives in and responds with force, he'll only discredit himself for all his supporters to see. It's a win-win for the Chosen One!

Beneath the ocean, Galvatron reveals another power of the Engima, forcibly separating Victorion into the individual [[Torchbearer]]s. Arcee tries to help the weakened warriors, but [[Pyra Magna]] urges her to complete their mission. But even as Arcee moves to act, Galvatron cooks up another combiner to add to the fight against the now badly outnumbered Superion—and merges Sky Lynx, Sunstreaker, Thundercracker, [[Cosmos (G1)|Cosmos]], and [[Slugslinger (G1)|Slugslinger]] into [[Sky Reign]]!

==Featured characters==
{{Featuredcharacters
|c1=
*[[Victorion]] (1)
*[[Superion (G1)|Superion]] (2)
*[[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Optimus Prime]] (3)
*[[Sky Lynx (G1)|Sky Lynx]] (4)
*[[Sunstreaker (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Sunstreaker]] (6)
*[[Jetfire (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jetfire]] (7)
*[[Kup (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Kup]] (8)
*[[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]] (9)
*[[Cosmos (G1)|Cosmos]] (10)
*[[Jazz (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jazz]] (23)
*[[Arcee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Arcee]] (24)
*[[Sideswipe (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Sideswipe]] (25)
*[[Tracks (G1)|Tracks]] (34)
*[[Skyburst (G1)|Skyburst]] (45)
*[[Rust Dust]] (46)
*[[Stormclash]] (47)
*[[Pyra Magna]] (48)
*[[Dust Up]] (49)
*[[Jumpstream]] (50)
*[[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]] (51)

|c2=
*[[Soundwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Soundwave]] (15)
*[[Slugslinger (G1)|Slugslinger]] (16)
*[[Swift (G1)|Swift]] (17)
*[[Needlenose (G1)|Needlenose]] (18)
*[[Sky-Byte (RID)|Sky-Byte]] (19)
*[[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] (20)
*[[Frenzy (G1)|Frenzy]] (21)
*[[Squeezeplay (G1)|Squeezeplay]] (22)
*[[Mindwipe (G1)|Mindwipe]] (27)
*[[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] (28)
*[[Skywarp (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Skywarp]] (29)
*[[Blitzwing (G1)|Blitzwing]] (35)
*[[Dreadwing (G2)|Dreadwing]] (36)
*[[Astrotrain (G1)|Astrotrain]] (37)
*[[Acid Storm (G1)|Acid Storm]] (38)
*[[Galvatronus (Generations)|Galvatronus]] (44)
*[[Sky Reign]] (52)
|c3=
*[[Marissa Faireborn]] (30)
*[[Sanjay Bharwaney]] (31)
*[[Spike Witwicky (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Spike Witwicky]] (32)
*[[Zilong Qian]] (33)
|c4=
*[[Thundercracker (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Thundercracker]] (5)
*[[D.0.C.]] (11)
*[[Bob (IDW)|Bob]] (12)
*[[Buster (IDW)|Buster]] (13)
*[[Aileron]] (14)
*[[G.B. Blackrock|Garrison Blackrock]] (26)
*[[Seeker clone]] combiners (39)
*[[Circuit (G1)|Circuit]] (40)
*[[Longtooth]] (41)
*[[Rattrap (BW)|Rattrap]] (42)
*[[Starscream (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Starscream]] (43)
}}

==Quotes==
"We didn't always get along, my '''brother''' and '''me'''. But he'd write." 
"Sideswipe knows how to '''write?'''" 
"Well, he'd send '''videos''', anyway."
:—'''Sunstreaker''' and '''Arcee'''

"We cast away all sense of fear; 
The die is struck, 
So best of luck 
Perhaps our lives will end here." 
:—'''Sky-Byte''' delivers a little pre-battle poetry.

"These '''undead abombinations''' are nothing to '''Superion.'''" 
"And '''me!'''" 
"And '''Victorion.'''"
:—'''Superion''' and '''Victorion'''

"All is '''fair''' in '''hate''' and '''conquest.'''"
:—'''Galvatron'''

==Notes==
===Continuity notes===
*Aileron recalls saving everyone in [[Shanghai]] in [[All Hail Optimus Part 1: Once Upon a Time on Earth|issue #50]], but Arcee shuts her down by reminding her of her disastrous actions in [[Washington, D.C.|Washington]] in [[All Hail Optimus Part 2: Edge of the Earth|issue #51]].
*Sunstreaker mentions how he and Sideswipe "didn't always get along," referring back to the state of their relationship when it was originally introduced in ''[[Spotlight: Sideswipe]]''.
*Optimus senses that there is something in Monument Valley. Back in [[All Hail Optimus Part 1: Once Upon a Time on Earth|issue #50]], Optimus had a vision of a [[Titan (IDW)|Titan]] emerging from beneath a desert surface...
*Just before being merged with the other, Sunstreaker recognizes the feeling of the Enigma's energy, having experienced it himself when he and some of his chums were merged into [[Optimus Maximus (G1)|Optimus Maximus]] back in [[You, Me, and the Universe|issue #41]].

===Transformers references===
*Sideswipe's jetpack is closely based on its appearance in the [[The Transformers (cartoon)|Generation 1 cartoon]] episode "[[More than Meets the Eye, Part 3]]", but is colored grey with black thrusters like the generic Autobot jetpacks featured in the show's second season.
*It's a regular Combiner War! Both [[Galvatronus (Generations)|Galvatronus]] and [[Sky Reign]]—new, original combiners created for the ''[[Combiner Wars (toyline)|Combiner Wars]]'' toyline—make their debuts in this issue, though they are quite different from the toys. Galvatronus's toy is formed using [[Cyclonus (G1)/toys#Generations|Cyclonus]] as its torso and any assortment of 'bots as its limbs, but obviously, Cyclonus is busy in [[The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|another book]], so Dreadwing takes his place as the combiner's central bot. Additionally, the toy ''looks'' like Galvatron, but here, Galvatron merely names it after himself. Sky Reign, on the other hand, is formed with Sky Lynx as his torso as in the toy, but with different limbs; in the toyline, [[Wheeljack (G1)/toys#CombinerWars|Wheeljack]], [[Hound (G1)/toys#Generations|Hound]], [[Smokescreen (G1)/toys#Generations|Smokescreen]], and [[Trailbreaker (G1)/toys#CombinerWars|Trailbreaker]] are used, but most of those 'bots are off on the ''[[Lost Light]]'' (or, uh, ''dead'') in this continuity.
*Galvatronus's head is based on that of ''[[Transformers: Generation 2 (toyline)|Generation 2]]'' [[Smokescreen (G2)|Smokescreen]], partner of the original Dreadwing figure.
*Coincidentally, this is the second time in many months that Astrotrain has appeared as a member of a comic-exclusive combiner, having debuted as such in ''[[Transformers: Deviations]]''.

===Real-life references===
*The title of this issue is taken from the {{w|Wire (band)|Wire}} album {{w|IBTABA|of the same name}}.
*Upon being confronted with the Seeker combiners, Jazz paraphrases the famous quote from ''{{w|Jaws (film)|Jaws}}'' when he says "I think we're gonna need a bigger shark."

===Errors===
*Dreadwing was one of the Decepticons who ''failed'' to make it through the space bridge and was last seen captured by the authorities on Cybertron in [[Conquerors Part 4: Perihelion|issue #49]], yet appears here among Galvatron's contingent of Decepticons on Earth.
*In the med bay scene, Arcee, Sideswipe, and Sunstreaker are all missing their Autobot insignias.
*In the final pages, a silhouette is shown speaking as Superion, however the silhouette is quite obviously the head of Victorion, who had been decombined earlier in the issue.

===Other trivia===
*After Victorion is forcibly separated by Galvatron, Rust Dust finally makes an appearance for the first time since the Torchbearers came to Earth. Hopefully, that's the last time we'll have to report on her constant disappearing/reapppearing!

===Covers (3)===
*'''Regular cover:''' Blackrock in the palm of Galvatron's hand, by [[Andrew Griffith]]
*'''Subscription cover:''' Soundwave and Optimus Prime face off, by [[Casey Coller]] and [[Joana Lafuente]]
*'''Retailer incentive cover:''' Arcee's not happy, by [[Priscilla Tramontano]]; one of two retailer incentive variants by Tramontano for this month's IDW ''Transformers'' titles.
<gallery>
File:TF53 regcvr.jpg|Galvatron has beautiful teeth — who knew?
File:TF53 subcvr.jpg|"Draw!"
File:TF53 cvrRI.jpg|Kiss her deadly.
</gallery>

===Advertisements===
*''The Transformers'' #54
*''[[The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye|More than Meets the Eye]]'' [[The Dying of the Light Part 4: At Close of Day|#53]]
*''[[The Transformers: Sins of the Wreckers|Sins of the Wreckers]]'' [[Sins of the Wreckers issue 5|#5]]
*''[[Transformers vs. G.I. Joe]]'' [[Transformers vs. G.I. Joe issue 12|#12]]
*''Wynonna Earp'' TV series (back cover)

==External links==
*[http://www.newsarama.com/29388-everyone-s-out-to-get-optimus-prime-in-transformers-53-preview.html Preview]

The Plotters' Club (Part 3): Journey's End

2018-01-17T20:39:20Z

Stryyder:

{{Comicstory
|seriesissue=''[[The Transformers: Lost Light|The Transformers: Lost Light]]'' #12
|prev=The Plotters' Club (Part 2): Filling in the Blanks
|next=Sardines
|image=LL12_cvrA.jpg
|title="The Plotters' Club (Part 3): Journey's End"
|caption=
|publisher=[[IDW Publishing]]
|date=[[December 27]], [[2017]]
|coverdate=November 2017
|written by=[[James Roberts]]
|art by=[[Jack Lawrence]] (pgs 1-7, 12-20), [[Andrew Griffith]] (pgs 8-11)
|colors by=[[Joana Lafuente]], [[John-Paul Bove]], and [[Priscilla Tramontano]]
|letters by=[[Tom B. Long]]
|editor=[[Carlos Guzman]]
|continuity=[[IDW Generation 1 continuity|IDW continuity]]
|chronology=[[IDW timeline|Current era]]
}}
'''The Protectobots make their stand against Getaway.'''

==Synopsis==
After pushing [[Riptide (G1)|Riptide]] into the oil reservoir, [[Getaway]] counts to thirty—the length of time it takes [[scraplet]]s to strip a mech down to their [[life cord]]—and considers the deed done. [[Atomizer]] feels a pang of guilt over Riptide's death, especially the needlessly cruel way Getaway spoke to him beforehand, but Getaway has already moved on to finding ways to beef up security on the ship. As the ''[[Lost Light]]'' exits the [[Warren]] and returns to regular space (four minutes ''before'' they left, thanks to its time-and-space bending properties), Getaway instructs [[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] to put in a call to someone that will be able to help out with that matter. But it turns out that Getaway and Atomizer have left the oil reservoir just a bit too soon: a moment later, Riptide bursts out of its depths, having survived by transforming to boat mode despite the fact the blast he received from Getaway's [[nudge gun]] should have made that impossible.

Getaway and Atomizer show [[Froid]] the "time window" created by [[Brainstorm (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Brainstorm]]'s [[time case]], allowing them to look back on a moment from the recent past when [[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rodimus]], [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]], and the rest of the team they exiled, were enjoying a drink in [[Swerve's]]. Getaway falls silent when he witnesses [[Skids (G1)|Skids]] and [[Nautica (G1)|Nautica]] sharing a moment, in which Skids calls the [[Caminus|Camien]] his "best friend," only speaking up again to voice his belief that the castaways have all survived their encounter with the [[Decepticon Justice Division]] and will be coming after the ''Lost Light''. But Getaway announces he is perfectly happy about this, since that means they'll be there to see him achieve his victory, finding [[Cyberutopia]] and becoming a [[Prime (rank)|Prime]]. Froid idly muses about ''[[primus apotheosis]]'', but ''assures'' Getaway he doesn't think ''his'' desire to be a Prime means ''he'' is delusional. Getaway notes that condition was first identified by [[Rung (G1)|Rung]]; Froid notes that his old rival is the most likely candidate to have died at the DJD's hands, and makes a point of describing him as "one of life's good guys."

Later, Getaway takes Atomizer to the medibay, where [[Thunder Clash|Thunderclash]], [[Mirage (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Mirage]], and the [[Protectobot (G1)|Protectobots]] all lie unconscious, trapped in memory loops. Sensing Atomizer's growing doubt, Getaway places a gun in his hand and instructs him to choose one of the Protectobots to kill, nominally to prevent them from forming [[Defensor (G1)|Defensor]] should they ever escape, but more than that, to deal with Atomizer's wavering conviction by dirtying his hands past the point of no return. Atomizer seems about to blast [[First Aid (G1)|First Aid]], but at the last moment, shoots [[Rook (Generations)|Rook]] instead, blowing him to pieces. Atomizer is left distraught by what he has been forced to do, but neither he nor Getaway realize the scene has been witnessed by Riptide, hiding the vents in the ceiling.

On the planet [[Frayus]], the [[Scavenger (group)|Scavengers]] are living up to their name scrounging around in the abandoned [[Decepticon]] outpost [[Camp Conclave]] for a rumored "secret stash" of [[ununtrium]] to get rich off of, but they find nothing of use. The misfits emerge from the soundproofed bunker to discover that the forces of the [[Galactic Council]] and the [[Black Block Consortia]] are at war on its doorstep, with [[Deathsaurus (Victory)|Deathsaurus]] and his troops—now under the command of former DJD member [[Nickel]]—caught in the middle! Nickel is puzzled as to the Consortia's sudden interest in this sector of space; Deathsaurus notes that it is rich in raw materials for [[eco-structuring|cyberforming]], but that export of those materials was recently taken over by a mysterious third party. The Scavengers, meanwhile, discover that the teleportal they used to get from [[Weak Anthropic Principle|their ship]] down to Frayus's surface has disappeared, evidently due to the orbiting ship being damaged in the battle—but a new avenue of escape opens when another portal appears right in front of them. On the other side, an unseen figure ([[Grimlock_(G1)/IDW_Generation_1_continuity|with a very familiar foot]]) that the group recognizes beckons them through, offering them "everything they've ever wanted," and the Scavengers don't hestiate to jump in... followed a moment later by Nickel, who is unintentionally hurled through by an explosion.

Back on the ''Lost Light'', Riptide awakens First Aid from his memory loop and fills him in on recent events; the medic is able to deduce that Riptide is "naturally immune" to the nudge gun thanks to his low intelligence. The pair wake up the other sleepers, and, realizing that the whole ship is against them, they decide to make a run for it. However, Getaway and the security team are in the shuttle bay to greet the new arrival Blaster contacted earlier, so to get past them all, the team make a stop at the ship's morgue to pick up the corpse of [[Ambulon]], who is able to take the departed Rook's place as a leg for the Protectobots' combined form. As Defensor, the team smashes into the shuttle bay and start tearing through the security team, while Thunderclash tackles Getaway himself. Unfortunately, Thunderclash is immediately blasted by Getaway's "new hire": former enforcer of the [[Tyrest Accord]] and religious lunatic [[Star Saber (Victory)|Star Saber]]! Mirage entreats Star Saber to stand down and listen so he can explain what is going on, but Star Saber is heedless: he slices Mirage to pieces, then cleaves Defensor into his component Protectobots. The security team cuts them down where they stand, save for First Aid, who tries to lug Thunderclash to safety with Riptide's help. They are only able to escape when Atomizer has an attack of conscience and leaps on Star Saber's back, blasting him with the nudge gun, allowing the three survivors to flee aboard Star Saber's ship.

A little later, Getaway contacts Froid to request another "favor" from [[Sunder (G1)|Sunder]]: Getaway has murdered Atomizer with his bare hands in retribution for his betrayal, and needs the security team's memories altered to make them think Thunderclash did it during the fight. Sunder's rising life cord price is too steep to pay, but before they can argue it out, Blaster breaks into the call with incredible news—the ''Lost Light'' has just arrived at its final destination. Before the ship lies a brilliant, shining, rainbow-hued metallic world.

They have found [[Cyberutopia]]!

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
{{{!}}border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="background:transparent"
{{!}}-
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Atomizer]] (1)
*[[Getaway]] (2)
*[[Mainframe (G1)|Mainframe]] (3)
*[[Perceptor (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Perceptor]] (4)
*[[Jackpot (G1)|Jackpot]] (5)
*[[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] (6)
*[[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]] (7)
*[[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] (8)
*[[Riptide (G1)|Riptide]] (9)
*''[[Brainstorm (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Brainstorm]]'' (10)
*''[[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]]'' (11)
*''[[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rodimus]]'' (13)
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*''[[Swerve (G1)|Swerve]]'' (14)
*''[[Skids (G1)|Skids]]'' (15)
*''[[Nautica (G1)|Nautica]]'' (16)
*''[[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Minimus Ambus]]'' (17)
*''[[Tailgate (G1)|Tailgate]]'' (18)
*''[[Velocity (G1)|Velocity]]'' (19)
*[[Thunder Clash|Thunderclash]] (21)
*[[First Aid (G1)|First Aid]] (22)
*[[Rook (Generations)|Rook]] (23)
*[[Hot Spot (G1)|Hot Spot]] (24)
*[[Groove (G1)|Groove]] (25)
*[[Blades (G1)|Blades]] (26)
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Streetwise (G1)|Streetwise]] (27)
*[[Grimlock (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Grimlock]] (30)
*[[Mirage (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Mirage]] (39)
*[[Ambulon]]'s corpse (40)
*[[Defensor (G1)|Defensor]] (41)
*[[Pointblank]] (42)
*[[Aquabat]] (43)
*[[Grotusque]] (44)
*[[Dogfight (G1)|Dogfight]] (45)
*[[Doublecross]] (46)
*[[Powerflash]] (48)
*[[Boss (G1)|Boss]] (49)
*[[Sunder (G1)|Sunder]] (50)
{{!}}}
|c2=
*[[Fulcrum]] (28)
*[[Misfire (G1)|Misfire]] (29)
*[[Crankcase (G1)|Crankcase]] (31)
*[[Krok (G1)|Krok]] (32)
*[[Spinister (G1)|Spinister]] (33)
*[[Eaglebreast]] (34)
*[[Deathsaurus (Victory)|Deathsaurus]] (35)
*[[Liokaiser]] (36)
*[[Tigerbreast]] (37)
*[[Nickel]] (38)
|c4=
*''[[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]]'' (12)
*[[Froid]] (20)
*[[Galactic Council]] troops (34)
*[[Black Block Consortia]] troops (35)
*[[Star Saber (Victory)|Star Saber]] (47)
}}

==Quotes==
"You're '''winning,''' Getaway. You needn't be so cruel."
:—'''Atomizer'''

"Look, I know what you've been thinking. Ever since Froid. Ever since Sunder. 'He's gone too far.' And you know what? You're right. I '''have''' gone too far. And now... so have you."
:—'''Getaway''' torments Atomizer after making him kill Rook

'''Fulcrum:''' "If there '''had''' been any ununtrium, I bet it would've been hidden behind a series of '''traps'''—each one more deadly and elaborate than the last." 
'''Misfire:''' "Yeah, but by overcoming each trap we'd have learned something important about ourselves." 
'''Crankcase:''' "Just so we're clear, by the end of our labors, would we have realized that friendship is more precious than metal?" 
'''Spinister:''' "Great—another pretend adventure you've had without me."

"On the day Primus was handing out '''brains''', you were at the back of the line. In fact, you weren't even '''in''' the line. You joined a different line by mistake." 
"I don't understand." 
"...is a gentler way of putting it, yes."
:—'''First Aid''' and '''Riptide'''

==Notes==
===Continuity notes===
*The time window in Swerve's was introduced in [[No Guns, No Swords, No Briefcases|''More than Meets the Eye'' #50]]. The final panel of that story revealed that Getaway had discovered it, at some point prior to the events of this story. Atomizer notes that the window was originally discovered while he and Getaway were "in the brig," between issues [[Speak, Memory! (Part 2)|issue #49]] and 50.
*As we observed in our notes for last issue, Getaway believes he is destined to be a Prime because, as revealed in [[Twenty Plus One|''More than Meets the Eye'' #31]] he has displayed the [[Signs of Affinity]] for the [[Matrix of Leadership]]. The signs are listed in this issue as being: "liberty blue" optics, the same color as the [[Matrix Flame]]; finding [[living metal|sentio metallico]] wet to the touch; becoming "giddy" while standing on a [[hot spot]]; and being able to make a [[photonic crystal]] "snap" when placed in your chest (though Roberts notes the specific meaning of the word "snap" in this context is deliberately left ambiguous, possibly referring to making it break, making it make a noise, or something else<ref>[https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/944918662326243329 James Roberts on "making a photonic crystal snap" on Twitter]</ref>). Of these, the idea that one's optic color is connected to Matrix affinity was first expressed in the prose story "[[Zero Point]]," in which [[Springer (G1)|Springer]]'s eyes were noted to be "an arresting, thousand-watt Matrix Blue," indicating that he was "Compatible."
*''Primus apotheosis'', the identity sickness that makes one think they are [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Optimus Prime]], was introduced in ''[[The Transformers: Last Stand of the Wreckers|Last Stand of the Wreckers]]'', in which [[Pyro (G1)|Pyro]] suffered from it.
*It's not clear if "Camp Conclave" is the literal name for the Decepticon base the Scavengers explore, or if it's a nickname Misfire is giving it. Either way, the name refers to the "[[conclave]]" of high-ranking Decepticons originally mentioned in [[Life After the Big Bang|''More than Meets the Eye'' #4]], at least one of whom it was noted was needed to be present to formally perform the [[Rite of the Deceptibrand]], which Crankcase describes undergoing in this story. Its design—a giant honking Decepticon symbol carved into a mountain—is very similar to a Decepticon base seen in [[Shining Armor issue 5|''Rom vs. Transformers: Shining Armor'' #5]].
*Crankcase reveals that before undergoing the Rite and receiving his [[Insignia|Decepticon badge]] proper, he was a [[Genericon]]—a lowly ranking class of cannon fodder troops introduced in ''More than Meets the Eye'' #4 where First Aid noted that their badges were a different size and shape. See also "Real-life references" below.
*The Scavengers are visiting Camp Conclave in search of [[ununtrium]], the super-metal used to create [[Phase Sixer]]s, introduced in [[Remembrance Day|''More than Meets the Eye'' #14]]. The same issue noted that [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]]'s infusion with the substance likely represented the last ununtrium remaining anywhere at all.
*The Council and Consortia were previously established to be fighting over Frayus last issue, when Getaway turned down a request for aid from the planet's natives.
*Deathsaurus and Nickel last appeared in [[The Dying of the Light Part 6: Do Not Go Gentle|''More than Meets the Eye'' #55]], when they abandoned the DJD to their fate at Megatron's hands. Deathsaurus was noted to be famous for cyberforming organic worlds in [[The Permanent Revolution|issue #39]], while Fulcrum had been established to have been part of a cyberforming unit in [[Scavengers (Part 2): Who's Afraid of the DJD?|issue #8]]; this issue consolidates the two by revealing that Fulcrum served under Deathsaurus.
*The [[Breastforce]] were originally shown to be under Deathsaurus's command in ''More than Meets the Eye'' #39. This issue reveals that they have the power to combine into Liokaiser in this continuity—though given the general rarity of combiners in IDW continuity, exactly ''how'' that can be remains to be seen. See "Transformers references" below for more on Liokaiser, but also "Errors".
*Riptide's lack of intelligence has been his predominant characteristic since ''More than Meets the Eye'' #31, in which he sorrowfully recalled how much he struggled with exams.
*Ambulon died in [[Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|''More than Meets the Eye'' #19]], and had his remains rebuilt into a cannon by [[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]] in [[Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|issue #20]]. Evidently, Ratchet restored him to normal and reattached the bisected halves of his body for interment.
*The idea that a dead Transformer can still combine with others was established in [[Chaos Part Three: Kings|''The Transformers'' vol. 1 #28]], in which the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] were able to do so with [[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]]. Defensor winds up a lot more mobile than [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] did, however; the Constructicon combiner had a "dead leg" as a result.
*Star Saber was last seen in [[Remain in Light 5 of 5: This Calamitous Life|''More than Meets the Eye'' #21]]. Getaway refers to the "bad blood" that exists between him and [[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]], who defeated him in a duel in that issue, and shrugs off his own bad blood with Saber (who helped imprison and torture him) by saying he was only following Tyrest's orders.

===Transformers references===
*Liokaiser is drawn based directly on his [[Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers: Victory (cartoon)|''Transformers: Victory'' cartoon]] [[character model]], but is colored like the ''[[Combiner Wars (toyline)|Combiner Wars]]'' Liokaiser toy, with a black-and-yellow helmet (teal on the original), a grey abdomen, and teal hips (both black on the original). But, see "Errors."
*First Aid laments about the fact he never got to know Rook, a tongue-in-cheek reference to his recent addition to the Protectobot Team as a result of the ''Combiner Wars'' toyline back in 2015.

===Real-life references===
*Crankcase refers to the Genericons' badges as "learner plates"; in [[James Roberts]]' native [[United Kingdom]] (and a few other countries besides) probationary drivers are required to display {{w|L-plate}}s on their vehicle before they have passed their driving test.

===Errors===
*On the final page, Blaster's face is colored grey rather than yellow.
*Having been drawn based on his classic character model, Liokaiser therefore has [[Hellbat (Victory)|Hellbat]] for a left arm. In IDW continuity, Hellbat died in [[Drift - Empire of Stone issue 4|''Empire of Stone'' #4]], and wasn't part of Deathsaurus's unit—stand-in member [[Deathcobra (Victory)|Deathcobra]] took his place, and should be the arm here. Also, the wings on Liokaiser's chesplate, which should be teal since they're part of [[Leozack]], are incorrectly colored (one magenta, one blue) as if they are part of [[Guyhawk]] and Hellbat; only his left hip is teal while his right is grey like the rest of his pelvis and abdomen; and he's got blue thighs, which isn't based on either the classic colour scheme or the ''Combiner Wars'' one that's otherwise being used here.
*Getaway identifies First Aid and Rook as Defensor's legs, but Rook only ever formed one of the combiner's arms in previous appearances. We will note, however, that Rook and First Aid are forming his legs in [[:File:Defensor Combiner Wars.jpg|TFWiki's picture of the toy]]...
*There's three errors with Ambulon and Defensor:
**Getaway claims that the Protectobots, but not Mirage or Thunderclash, are combiners... but Mirage ''is'' a combiner limb, having been merged into [[Optimus Maximus (G1)|Optimus Maximus]] during ''[[Combiner Wars (comic)|Combiner Wars]]''. This could be chalked up to Getaway not knowing about Mirage's combining ability, but if he managed to find out about Defensor, it seems likely that he would also know about Mirage. What's worse is that Mirage and the Protectobots should definitely know, meaning they don't actually ''need'' to use Ambulon's dead body to complete Defensor! This could be no-prized by everyone assuming that Mirage can only function as an arm (as he does as a component of Optimus Maximus), rather than a leg.
**The Protectobots use the intact corpse of Ambulon to serve as a replacement limb, and Defensor suffers no obvious ill effects. Meanwhile, when the Contructicons [[Chaos Part Three: Kings|tried this]] with the cadaver of Scrapper, Devastator ended up with a non-functioning leg. Of course, Devastator was on the surface of Cybertron, while Defensor is confined within the shuttle bay of the Lost Light - ill effects might not be as obvious within this context.
**Half or all of Ambulon's corpse was turned into a gun back in [[Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|"Arm the Lonely"]]. His body could have been rebuilt as a matter of respect, but then why has he just been lying in the morgue for years instead of being properly buried?

===Other trivia===
*Originally solicited for release in November, this issue arrives noticeably late, in the final week of December.
*It's not really clear on the page ''why'' Riptide isn't eaten by the scraplets despite being able to transform, since he's still submerged under the oil for thirty seconds regardless. His high-speed exit from the reservoir, launching himself to safety in a way that wouldn't be possible in robot mode, suggests he's been whizzing around below the surface, evading the critters until he could burst free.

===Soundtrack===
*"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJUJTGUH0mc Planet Sizes]" by {{w|Steve Mason (musician)|Steve Mason}}
*"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOK_vqtXgbk Beat Surrender]" by {{w|The Jam}}

===Covers (4)===
*'''Cover A:''' Defensor looms over Getaway, by [[Jack Lawrence]] and [[Joana Lafuente]]
*'''Cover B:''' An invisible Mirage, spattered with energon, by [[Nick Roche]] and [[Josh Burcham]]
*'''Cover C:''' Getaway versus Defensor, by [[Alex Milne]] and [[Josh Perez]]
*'''Retailer incentive cover:''' Megatron by [[Livio Ramondelli]]; companion piece to Ramondelli's Optimus Prime cover for [[The Dead Come Home, Part 1 (of 2)|''Optimus Prime'' #13]]

<gallery>
File:LL12 cvrA.jpg|
File:LL12 cvrB.jpg|
File:LL12 cvrC.jpg|
File:LL12 cvrRI.jpg|
</gallery>

===Advertisements===
*''Lost Light'' #13
*''[[Jem]] and the Holograms: Dimensions''
*''[[G.I. Joe (franchise)|G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero]]'' #246
*''[[Transformers vs. G.I. Joe]]: The Quintessential Collection''
*''[[My Little Pony]]: Legends of Magic''
*IDW ''DuckTales'' comic
*''[[Star Trek]]: Waypoint''
*''Sword of Ages''
*''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters 2''

==External links==
*[https://www.cbr.com/exclusive-transformers-lost-light-12/ Preview]

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category: Lost Light issues]]

The Plotters' Club (Part 3): Journey's End

2018-01-17T20:38:34Z

Stryyder:

{{Comicstory
|seriesissue=''[[The Transformers: Lost Light|The Transformers: Lost Light]]'' #12
|prev=The Plotters' Club (Part 2): Filling in the Blanks
|next=Sardines
|image=LL12_cvrA.jpg
|title="The Plotters' Club (Part 3): Journey's End"
|caption=
|publisher=[[IDW Publishing]]
|date=[[December 27]], [[2017]]
|coverdate=November 2017
|written by=[[James Roberts]]
|art by=[[Jack Lawrence]] (pgs 1-7, 12-20), [[Andrew Griffith]] (pgs 8-11)
|colors by=[[Joana Lafuente]], [[John-Paul Bove]], and [[Priscilla Tramontano]]
|letters by=[[Tom B. Long]]
|editor=[[Carlos Guzman]]
|continuity=[[IDW Generation 1 continuity|IDW continuity]]
|chronology=[[IDW timeline|Current era]]
}}
'''The Protectobots make their stand against Getaway.'''

==Synopsis==
After pushing [[Riptide (G1)|Riptide]] into the oil reservoir, [[Getaway]] counts to thirty—the length of time it takes [[scraplet]]s to strip a mech down to their [[life cord]]—and considers the deed done. [[Atomizer]] feels a pang of guilt over Riptide's death, especially the needlessly cruel way Getaway spoke to him beforehand, but Getaway has already moved on to finding ways to beef up security on the ship. As the ''[[Lost Light]]'' exits the [[Warren]] and returns to regular space (four minutes ''before'' they left, thanks to its time-and-space bending properties), Getaway instructs [[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] to put in a call to someone that will be able to help out with that matter. But it turns out that Getaway and Atomizer have left the oil reservoir just a bit too soon: a moment later, Riptide bursts out of its depths, having survived by transforming to boat mode despite the fact the blast he received from Getaway's [[nudge gun]] should have made that impossible.

Getaway and Atomizer show [[Froid]] the "time window" created by [[Brainstorm (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Brainstorm]]'s [[time case]], allowing them to look back on a moment from the recent past when [[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rodimus]], [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]], and the rest of the team they exiled, were enjoying a drink in [[Swerve's]]. Getaway falls silent when he witnesses [[Skids (G1)|Skids]] and [[Nautica (G1)|Nautica]] sharing a moment, in which Skids calls the [[Caminus|Camien]] his "best friend," only speaking up again to voice his belief that the castaways have all survived their encounter with the [[Decepticon Justice Division]] and will be coming after the ''Lost Light''. But Getaway announces he is perfectly happy about this, since that means they'll be there to see him achieve his victory, finding [[Cyberutopia]] and becoming a [[Prime (rank)|Prime]]. Froid idly muses about ''[[primus apotheosis]]'', but ''assures'' Getaway he doesn't think ''his'' desire to be a Prime means ''he'' is delusional. Getaway notes that condition was first identified by [[Rung (G1)|Rung]]; Froid notes that his old rival is the most likely candidate to have died at the DJD's hands, and makes a point of describing him as "one of life's good guys."

Later, Getaway takes Atomizer to the medibay, where [[Thunder Clash|Thunderclash]], [[Mirage (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Mirage]], and the [[Protectobot (G1)|Protectobots]] all lie unconscious, trapped in memory loops. Sensing Atomizer's growing doubt, Getaway places a gun in his hand and instructs him to choose one of the Protectobots to kill, nominally to prevent them from forming [[Defensor (G1)|Defensor]] should they ever escape, but more than that, to deal with Atomizer's wavering conviction by dirtying his hands past the point of no return. Atomizer seems about to blast [[First Aid (G1)|First Aid]], but at the last moment, shoots [[Rook (Generations)|Rook]] instead, blowing him to pieces. Atomizer is left distraught by what he has been forced to do, but neither he nor Getaway realize the scene has been witnessed by Riptide, hiding the vents in the ceiling.

On the planet [[Frayus]], the [[Scavenger (group)|Scavengers]] are living up to their name scrounging around in the abandoned [[Decepticon]] outpost [[Camp Conclave]] for a rumored "secret stash" of [[ununtrium]] to get rich off of, but they find nothing of use. The misfits emerge from the soundproofed bunker to discover that the forces of the [[Galactic Council]] and the [[Black Block Consortia]] are at war on its doorstep, with [[Deathsaurus (Victory)|Deathsaurus]] and his troops—now under the command of former DJD member [[Nickel]]—caught in the middle! Nickel is puzzled as to the Consortia's sudden interest in this sector of space; Deathsaurus notes that it is rich in raw materials for [[eco-structuring|cyberforming]], but that export of those materials was recently taken over by a mysterious third party. The Scavengers, meanwhile, discover that the teleportal they used to get from [[Weak Anthropic Principle|their ship]] down to Frayus's surface has disappeared, evidently due to the orbiting ship being damaged in the battle—but a new avenue of escape opens when another portal appears right in front of them. On the other side, an unseen figure ([[Grimlock_(G1)|IDW_Generation_1_continuity|with a very familiar foot]]) that the group recognizes beckons them through, offering them "everything they've ever wanted," and the Scavengers don't hestiate to jump in... followed a moment later by Nickel, who is unintentionally hurled through by an explosion.

Back on the ''Lost Light'', Riptide awakens First Aid from his memory loop and fills him in on recent events; the medic is able to deduce that Riptide is "naturally immune" to the nudge gun thanks to his low intelligence. The pair wake up the other sleepers, and, realizing that the whole ship is against them, they decide to make a run for it. However, Getaway and the security team are in the shuttle bay to greet the new arrival Blaster contacted earlier, so to get past them all, the team make a stop at the ship's morgue to pick up the corpse of [[Ambulon]], who is able to take the departed Rook's place as a leg for the Protectobots' combined form. As Defensor, the team smashes into the shuttle bay and start tearing through the security team, while Thunderclash tackles Getaway himself. Unfortunately, Thunderclash is immediately blasted by Getaway's "new hire": former enforcer of the [[Tyrest Accord]] and religious lunatic [[Star Saber (Victory)|Star Saber]]! Mirage entreats Star Saber to stand down and listen so he can explain what is going on, but Star Saber is heedless: he slices Mirage to pieces, then cleaves Defensor into his component Protectobots. The security team cuts them down where they stand, save for First Aid, who tries to lug Thunderclash to safety with Riptide's help. They are only able to escape when Atomizer has an attack of conscience and leaps on Star Saber's back, blasting him with the nudge gun, allowing the three survivors to flee aboard Star Saber's ship.

A little later, Getaway contacts Froid to request another "favor" from [[Sunder (G1)|Sunder]]: Getaway has murdered Atomizer with his bare hands in retribution for his betrayal, and needs the security team's memories altered to make them think Thunderclash did it during the fight. Sunder's rising life cord price is too steep to pay, but before they can argue it out, Blaster breaks into the call with incredible news—the ''Lost Light'' has just arrived at its final destination. Before the ship lies a brilliant, shining, rainbow-hued metallic world.

They have found [[Cyberutopia]]!

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
{{{!}}border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="background:transparent"
{{!}}-
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Atomizer]] (1)
*[[Getaway]] (2)
*[[Mainframe (G1)|Mainframe]] (3)
*[[Perceptor (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Perceptor]] (4)
*[[Jackpot (G1)|Jackpot]] (5)
*[[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] (6)
*[[Smokescreen (G1)|Smokescreen]] (7)
*[[Inferno (G1)|Inferno]] (8)
*[[Riptide (G1)|Riptide]] (9)
*''[[Brainstorm (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Brainstorm]]'' (10)
*''[[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]]'' (11)
*''[[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rodimus]]'' (13)
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*''[[Swerve (G1)|Swerve]]'' (14)
*''[[Skids (G1)|Skids]]'' (15)
*''[[Nautica (G1)|Nautica]]'' (16)
*''[[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Minimus Ambus]]'' (17)
*''[[Tailgate (G1)|Tailgate]]'' (18)
*''[[Velocity (G1)|Velocity]]'' (19)
*[[Thunder Clash|Thunderclash]] (21)
*[[First Aid (G1)|First Aid]] (22)
*[[Rook (Generations)|Rook]] (23)
*[[Hot Spot (G1)|Hot Spot]] (24)
*[[Groove (G1)|Groove]] (25)
*[[Blades (G1)|Blades]] (26)
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Streetwise (G1)|Streetwise]] (27)
*[[Grimlock (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Grimlock]] (30)
*[[Mirage (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Mirage]] (39)
*[[Ambulon]]'s corpse (40)
*[[Defensor (G1)|Defensor]] (41)
*[[Pointblank]] (42)
*[[Aquabat]] (43)
*[[Grotusque]] (44)
*[[Dogfight (G1)|Dogfight]] (45)
*[[Doublecross]] (46)
*[[Powerflash]] (48)
*[[Boss (G1)|Boss]] (49)
*[[Sunder (G1)|Sunder]] (50)
{{!}}}
|c2=
*[[Fulcrum]] (28)
*[[Misfire (G1)|Misfire]] (29)
*[[Crankcase (G1)|Crankcase]] (31)
*[[Krok (G1)|Krok]] (32)
*[[Spinister (G1)|Spinister]] (33)
*[[Eaglebreast]] (34)
*[[Deathsaurus (Victory)|Deathsaurus]] (35)
*[[Liokaiser]] (36)
*[[Tigerbreast]] (37)
*[[Nickel]] (38)
|c4=
*''[[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]]'' (12)
*[[Froid]] (20)
*[[Galactic Council]] troops (34)
*[[Black Block Consortia]] troops (35)
*[[Star Saber (Victory)|Star Saber]] (47)
}}

==Quotes==
"You're '''winning,''' Getaway. You needn't be so cruel."
:—'''Atomizer'''

"Look, I know what you've been thinking. Ever since Froid. Ever since Sunder. 'He's gone too far.' And you know what? You're right. I '''have''' gone too far. And now... so have you."
:—'''Getaway''' torments Atomizer after making him kill Rook

'''Fulcrum:''' "If there '''had''' been any ununtrium, I bet it would've been hidden behind a series of '''traps'''—each one more deadly and elaborate than the last." 
'''Misfire:''' "Yeah, but by overcoming each trap we'd have learned something important about ourselves." 
'''Crankcase:''' "Just so we're clear, by the end of our labors, would we have realized that friendship is more precious than metal?" 
'''Spinister:''' "Great—another pretend adventure you've had without me."

"On the day Primus was handing out '''brains''', you were at the back of the line. In fact, you weren't even '''in''' the line. You joined a different line by mistake." 
"I don't understand." 
"...is a gentler way of putting it, yes."
:—'''First Aid''' and '''Riptide'''

==Notes==
===Continuity notes===
*The time window in Swerve's was introduced in [[No Guns, No Swords, No Briefcases|''More than Meets the Eye'' #50]]. The final panel of that story revealed that Getaway had discovered it, at some point prior to the events of this story. Atomizer notes that the window was originally discovered while he and Getaway were "in the brig," between issues [[Speak, Memory! (Part 2)|issue #49]] and 50.
*As we observed in our notes for last issue, Getaway believes he is destined to be a Prime because, as revealed in [[Twenty Plus One|''More than Meets the Eye'' #31]] he has displayed the [[Signs of Affinity]] for the [[Matrix of Leadership]]. The signs are listed in this issue as being: "liberty blue" optics, the same color as the [[Matrix Flame]]; finding [[living metal|sentio metallico]] wet to the touch; becoming "giddy" while standing on a [[hot spot]]; and being able to make a [[photonic crystal]] "snap" when placed in your chest (though Roberts notes the specific meaning of the word "snap" in this context is deliberately left ambiguous, possibly referring to making it break, making it make a noise, or something else<ref>[https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/944918662326243329 James Roberts on "making a photonic crystal snap" on Twitter]</ref>). Of these, the idea that one's optic color is connected to Matrix affinity was first expressed in the prose story "[[Zero Point]]," in which [[Springer (G1)|Springer]]'s eyes were noted to be "an arresting, thousand-watt Matrix Blue," indicating that he was "Compatible."
*''Primus apotheosis'', the identity sickness that makes one think they are [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Optimus Prime]], was introduced in ''[[The Transformers: Last Stand of the Wreckers|Last Stand of the Wreckers]]'', in which [[Pyro (G1)|Pyro]] suffered from it.
*It's not clear if "Camp Conclave" is the literal name for the Decepticon base the Scavengers explore, or if it's a nickname Misfire is giving it. Either way, the name refers to the "[[conclave]]" of high-ranking Decepticons originally mentioned in [[Life After the Big Bang|''More than Meets the Eye'' #4]], at least one of whom it was noted was needed to be present to formally perform the [[Rite of the Deceptibrand]], which Crankcase describes undergoing in this story. Its design—a giant honking Decepticon symbol carved into a mountain—is very similar to a Decepticon base seen in [[Shining Armor issue 5|''Rom vs. Transformers: Shining Armor'' #5]].
*Crankcase reveals that before undergoing the Rite and receiving his [[Insignia|Decepticon badge]] proper, he was a [[Genericon]]—a lowly ranking class of cannon fodder troops introduced in ''More than Meets the Eye'' #4 where First Aid noted that their badges were a different size and shape. See also "Real-life references" below.
*The Scavengers are visiting Camp Conclave in search of [[ununtrium]], the super-metal used to create [[Phase Sixer]]s, introduced in [[Remembrance Day|''More than Meets the Eye'' #14]]. The same issue noted that [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]]'s infusion with the substance likely represented the last ununtrium remaining anywhere at all.
*The Council and Consortia were previously established to be fighting over Frayus last issue, when Getaway turned down a request for aid from the planet's natives.
*Deathsaurus and Nickel last appeared in [[The Dying of the Light Part 6: Do Not Go Gentle|''More than Meets the Eye'' #55]], when they abandoned the DJD to their fate at Megatron's hands. Deathsaurus was noted to be famous for cyberforming organic worlds in [[The Permanent Revolution|issue #39]], while Fulcrum had been established to have been part of a cyberforming unit in [[Scavengers (Part 2): Who's Afraid of the DJD?|issue #8]]; this issue consolidates the two by revealing that Fulcrum served under Deathsaurus.
*The [[Breastforce]] were originally shown to be under Deathsaurus's command in ''More than Meets the Eye'' #39. This issue reveals that they have the power to combine into Liokaiser in this continuity—though given the general rarity of combiners in IDW continuity, exactly ''how'' that can be remains to be seen. See "Transformers references" below for more on Liokaiser, but also "Errors".
*Riptide's lack of intelligence has been his predominant characteristic since ''More than Meets the Eye'' #31, in which he sorrowfully recalled how much he struggled with exams.
*Ambulon died in [[Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|''More than Meets the Eye'' #19]], and had his remains rebuilt into a cannon by [[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]] in [[Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|issue #20]]. Evidently, Ratchet restored him to normal and reattached the bisected halves of his body for interment.
*The idea that a dead Transformer can still combine with others was established in [[Chaos Part Three: Kings|''The Transformers'' vol. 1 #28]], in which the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]] were able to do so with [[Scrapper (G1)|Scrapper]]. Defensor winds up a lot more mobile than [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]] did, however; the Constructicon combiner had a "dead leg" as a result.
*Star Saber was last seen in [[Remain in Light 5 of 5: This Calamitous Life|''More than Meets the Eye'' #21]]. Getaway refers to the "bad blood" that exists between him and [[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]], who defeated him in a duel in that issue, and shrugs off his own bad blood with Saber (who helped imprison and torture him) by saying he was only following Tyrest's orders.

===Transformers references===
*Liokaiser is drawn based directly on his [[Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers: Victory (cartoon)|''Transformers: Victory'' cartoon]] [[character model]], but is colored like the ''[[Combiner Wars (toyline)|Combiner Wars]]'' Liokaiser toy, with a black-and-yellow helmet (teal on the original), a grey abdomen, and teal hips (both black on the original). But, see "Errors."
*First Aid laments about the fact he never got to know Rook, a tongue-in-cheek reference to his recent addition to the Protectobot Team as a result of the ''Combiner Wars'' toyline back in 2015.

===Real-life references===
*Crankcase refers to the Genericons' badges as "learner plates"; in [[James Roberts]]' native [[United Kingdom]] (and a few other countries besides) probationary drivers are required to display {{w|L-plate}}s on their vehicle before they have passed their driving test.

===Errors===
*On the final page, Blaster's face is colored grey rather than yellow.
*Having been drawn based on his classic character model, Liokaiser therefore has [[Hellbat (Victory)|Hellbat]] for a left arm. In IDW continuity, Hellbat died in [[Drift - Empire of Stone issue 4|''Empire of Stone'' #4]], and wasn't part of Deathsaurus's unit—stand-in member [[Deathcobra (Victory)|Deathcobra]] took his place, and should be the arm here. Also, the wings on Liokaiser's chesplate, which should be teal since they're part of [[Leozack]], are incorrectly colored (one magenta, one blue) as if they are part of [[Guyhawk]] and Hellbat; only his left hip is teal while his right is grey like the rest of his pelvis and abdomen; and he's got blue thighs, which isn't based on either the classic colour scheme or the ''Combiner Wars'' one that's otherwise being used here.
*Getaway identifies First Aid and Rook as Defensor's legs, but Rook only ever formed one of the combiner's arms in previous appearances. We will note, however, that Rook and First Aid are forming his legs in [[:File:Defensor Combiner Wars.jpg|TFWiki's picture of the toy]]...
*There's three errors with Ambulon and Defensor:
**Getaway claims that the Protectobots, but not Mirage or Thunderclash, are combiners... but Mirage ''is'' a combiner limb, having been merged into [[Optimus Maximus (G1)|Optimus Maximus]] during ''[[Combiner Wars (comic)|Combiner Wars]]''. This could be chalked up to Getaway not knowing about Mirage's combining ability, but if he managed to find out about Defensor, it seems likely that he would also know about Mirage. What's worse is that Mirage and the Protectobots should definitely know, meaning they don't actually ''need'' to use Ambulon's dead body to complete Defensor! This could be no-prized by everyone assuming that Mirage can only function as an arm (as he does as a component of Optimus Maximus), rather than a leg.
**The Protectobots use the intact corpse of Ambulon to serve as a replacement limb, and Defensor suffers no obvious ill effects. Meanwhile, when the Contructicons [[Chaos Part Three: Kings|tried this]] with the cadaver of Scrapper, Devastator ended up with a non-functioning leg. Of course, Devastator was on the surface of Cybertron, while Defensor is confined within the shuttle bay of the Lost Light - ill effects might not be as obvious within this context.
**Half or all of Ambulon's corpse was turned into a gun back in [[Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|"Arm the Lonely"]]. His body could have been rebuilt as a matter of respect, but then why has he just been lying in the morgue for years instead of being properly buried?

===Other trivia===
*Originally solicited for release in November, this issue arrives noticeably late, in the final week of December.
*It's not really clear on the page ''why'' Riptide isn't eaten by the scraplets despite being able to transform, since he's still submerged under the oil for thirty seconds regardless. His high-speed exit from the reservoir, launching himself to safety in a way that wouldn't be possible in robot mode, suggests he's been whizzing around below the surface, evading the critters until he could burst free.

===Soundtrack===
*"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJUJTGUH0mc Planet Sizes]" by {{w|Steve Mason (musician)|Steve Mason}}
*"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOK_vqtXgbk Beat Surrender]" by {{w|The Jam}}

===Covers (4)===
*'''Cover A:''' Defensor looms over Getaway, by [[Jack Lawrence]] and [[Joana Lafuente]]
*'''Cover B:''' An invisible Mirage, spattered with energon, by [[Nick Roche]] and [[Josh Burcham]]
*'''Cover C:''' Getaway versus Defensor, by [[Alex Milne]] and [[Josh Perez]]
*'''Retailer incentive cover:''' Megatron by [[Livio Ramondelli]]; companion piece to Ramondelli's Optimus Prime cover for [[The Dead Come Home, Part 1 (of 2)|''Optimus Prime'' #13]]

<gallery>
File:LL12 cvrA.jpg|
File:LL12 cvrB.jpg|
File:LL12 cvrC.jpg|
File:LL12 cvrRI.jpg|
</gallery>

===Advertisements===
*''Lost Light'' #13
*''[[Jem]] and the Holograms: Dimensions''
*''[[G.I. Joe (franchise)|G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero]]'' #246
*''[[Transformers vs. G.I. Joe]]: The Quintessential Collection''
*''[[My Little Pony]]: Legends of Magic''
*IDW ''DuckTales'' comic
*''[[Star Trek]]: Waypoint''
*''Sword of Ages''
*''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters 2''

==External links==
*[https://www.cbr.com/exclusive-transformers-lost-light-12/ Preview]

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category: Lost Light issues]]