Elegant Chaos Part 2: Stet
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|}{{#switch:{{#sub:xx|2|14}}|dark cybertron=}}
Rodimus's team continues their pursuit of Brainstorm through time, only to find that they are more involved in past events than expected—and that Brainstorm's goal is not what they believed it to be.
Synopsis
[edit]Rodimus's team has followed Brainstorm back to Clampdown-era Rodion, and have spread out to search for the rogue scientist. While Rodimus watches for Orion Pax at the police station alongside Whirl, he checks in with the others: Rewind is surveying the city from his position on an airship; the bored Riptide is watching the waterways; a nervous Chromedome is riding the rails to avoid the risk of running into his past self; and Cyclonus and Tailgate look down on the city from a nearby cliff. Emotionally moved by the sight of the pristine planet, unblemished by war, to the point that he is struck dumb, Cyclonus doesn't respond to Rodimus, so Tailgate takes the communicator and quickly makes up a story about having set down for repairs. After a moment of silence, Cyclonus apologizes to Tailgate for physically abusing him in the past.
Rodimus then calls Perceptor, who expresses concern over the fact that Rewind's database is being overwritten, as it implies that Brainstorm's alteration to the timeline may have already happened, or is destined to. As such, if they cannot stop him, Perceptor must dismantle the time machine to undo the paradox, warning that many things could "go wrong". Reminded by those words that he had forgotten about Rung, Rodimus contacts the psychotherapist, who is staking out Maccadam's New Oil House. Unfortunately, Brainstorm is also watching the bar, and when he spots Rung building a model of the Lost Light, he realizes that he has been followed back in time and abandons his plans. Brainstorm's flight is spotted by Rewind, and Cyclonus gives chase, but just before he can land a missile-hit, Brainstorm's briefcase activates and he time-jumps away. At Perceptor's instruction, the team regroups at Maccadam's, and he sends them after their quarry.

Arriving one year further in the past, in 4th Cycle 499, the team are contacted by Perceptor and Ultra Magnus, who believe that Maccadam's is important, and that the deductions they made about Brainstorm's plans may have been hasty. Accordingly, the group splits in two: Chromedome, Rewind, and Whirl head for the police station while the rest remain at the bar. But Brainstorm has gone to neither, and is, in fact, at a wellbeing clinic several miles away, where he ambushes and knocks out the Rung of the past...
Later at the police station again, Chromedome and Rewind spend time stargazing, but Rewind is preoccupied with thoughts of the unknown fate of Dominus Ambus. He proposes using the time-case to finally discover what befell his former Conjunx Endura, but Chromedome worries that he will want to change history and save Dominus's life, which would mean that his and Rewind's relationship would never happen. Before they can discuss those unfortunate ramifications too deeply, Whirl alerts them to the arrival of his own past self at the station. This day being so important in his life, Whirl is able to recognize the 'nobody' he's bringing in as being Crossbar, and then realizes what specific day it is — the day Megatron is arrested.
Back at Maccadam's, the rest of the team watch the younger Megatron and Impactor sitting at a nearby table. When Rung goes to fetch a curly straw for Tailgate, however, he accidentally knocks over a jumped-up cadet's drink, and winds up being thrown into Megatron and Impactor's table when he refuses to clean up the mess. This instigates the famous bar-room brawl that leads to Megatron's arrest, and as the Lost Lighters make themselves scarce, Brainstorm, looking on from outside, grimaces at the realization his attempt to prevent it by incapacitating the past-Rung has failed.

A few hours later, at the police station, after Megatron has been arrested and subsequently released by Pax, the Senate's goon squad arrives for payback and kills officers Springarm and Wheelarch. Chromedome refuses to let Rewind intervene, regrettably understanding that history must be preserved, but is too slow to stop the deranged Whirl leaping into the fray when three new thugs come stomping up—including the Heavies, who destroyed Whirl's life when they wrecked his watchmaking business. Hungry for revenge, Whirl takes the two huge 'bots down with violent ease; Chromedome intervenes before he can kill them, reminding Whirl that they have to live, so that Chromedome can have his own encounter with them in a year's time. Whirl justifies his actions by explaining his history with the Heavies... a history which is then elaborated upon by Hammer, who tells Whirl that the pair acted on the orders of the Functionist Council, who wanted him punished him for abandoning his assigned job in the Aerial Corps, and who were also responsible for his later empurata. With icy detachment, Whirl vents his rage by shooting the third 'bot, who is unfamiliar to him, but whom he deems guilty by association.
Back in the present, on the Lost Light, Perceptor discovers that time has ceased to flow in all other parts of the universe, indicating the imminent collapse of the original timeline. Studying the dates Rodimus's team has travelled to, Megatron realizes that they have been working on a flawed principle: the dates correspond to major events in Megatron's life, not Orion Pax's. It is Megatron's life that Brainstorm is trying to unmake... and even as Ultra Magnus's internal criminal database is overwritten, and Megatron disappears from his records, in the past, Brainstorm appears at the moment of Megatron's creation, and levels his weapons at the once and future Decepticon leader's half-built form...
Featured characters
[edit]{{#if: ||(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)}}
- Whirl (2)
- Rewind (3)
- Riptide (5)
- Chromedome (6)
- Tailgate (8)
- Ultra Magnus (9)
- Megatron (10)
- Perceptor (11)
- Rung (14)|
| Autobots }}{{#if:* Brainstorm (15)| | Decepticons }}{{#if:| | Humans }}{{#if:{|border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="background:transparent" |
|---|---|---|
|
Present day
Earlier timeframe - 51st Cycle 500
Even earlier timeframe - 4th Cycle 499
Earliest timeframe - 1st Cycle 012
|
!! style="background:#ffeeb8;" | Others }}{{#if:| !! style="background:#d5e6d5;" | Misc }}{{#if:| !! style="background:#fedeb5;" | Misc }} |- {{#if:* Rodimus (1)
- Whirl (2)
- Rewind (3)
- Riptide (5)
- Chromedome (6)
- Tailgate (8)
- Ultra Magnus (9)
- Megatron (10)
- Perceptor (11)
- Rung (14)|| style="background:#ffdddd;" valign="top" |
- Rodimus (1)
- Whirl (2)
- Rewind (3)
- Riptide (5)
- Chromedome (6)
- Tailgate (8)
- Ultra Magnus (9)
- Megatron (10)
- Perceptor (11)
- Rung (14) }}{{#if:* Brainstorm (15)|
| style="background:#ededff;" valign="top" |
- Brainstorm (15) }}{{#if:|
| style="background:#fbefde;" valign="top" |
}}{{#if:{|border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="background:transparent"
|- |style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"| Present day
- Cyclonus (7)
Earlier timeframe - 51st Cycle 500
- Proteus (Billboard, 4)
- Quark (12)
- Nightbeat (13)
- "Streaker" (16)
- Sherma's corpse (17)
- "Fallout" (18)
- Scrounge (19)
Even earlier timeframe - 4th Cycle 499
- Rung (20)
- Crossbar (21)
- Whirl (22)
- Megatron (23)
- Impactor (24)
- Cadets (25-26)
- Valve? (27)
- Roller (28)
- Visored green and indigo thug (29)
- Wheelarch's head (30)
- Springarm (31)
- White and mauve thug (32)
- Anvil (33)
- Future Sparkeater thug (34)
- Hammer (35)
Earliest timeframe - 1st Cycle 012
- Megatron's unfinished body (36)
|}| | style="background:#ffeeb8;" valign="top" |
|
Present day
Earlier timeframe - 51st Cycle 500
Even earlier timeframe - 4th Cycle 499
Earliest timeframe - 1st Cycle 012
|
| style="background:#d5e6d5;" valign="top" |
}}{{#if:|
| style="background:#fedeb5;" valign="top" |
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Quotes
[edit]"You said the station was always busy. You said—"
"I said it was a non-stop cop shop. An' I only said that 'cos it rhymed."
"I can't tell if you're joking."
"Welcome to the club."
- —Rodimus and Whirl
Tailgate, after taking the communicator from Cyclonus and covering for his silence to Rodimus:
"Is it the time travel? 'Cos I'm only just wrapping my head around it myself. I mean, think about it: I'm somewhere out there right now, buried underground. Me! Underground! Right now! Me! The way I see it, you just have to accept what's happening as something that's... happening. And I think that's true of so many things in life."
"It's beautiful."
"Oh! Rodion."
"Cybertron."
"Yes, well, umm..drink it in, I guess."
"It's been so long. So long since I saw it as it should be seen."
Both stare at the beauty of the city, then Cyclonus glances down at Tailgate
"I'm sorry."
"Noted."
"No offense, but you couldn't draw attention to yourself if you tried. Even mirrors ignore you."
- —Rodimus, to Rung
"Okay, as entrances go, that was only slightly less conspicuous than projecting "Your Attention Please" on a mushroom cloud."
- —Chromedome on the team's arrival in 4th Cycle 499
"Rodimus? It's Ultra Magnus speaking."
"Listen, whatever I've done, it was an accident and I'm sorry."
"The big picture: Brainstorm trying to kill Pax. We drew it at speed because we had to. But the more we look at it, the less it makes sense."
"Magnus, the last thing I want to do is dissuade you from exploring the power of metaphor, but I really don't have the remotest idea what you're talking about."
- —Ultra Magnus and Rodimus
Rodimus: "The back door's this way. No one make eye contact with anybody. Especially not you, Tailgate."
Tailgate: "Why especially not me?"
Rodimus: "Because you've got one of those faces."
Tailgate: "What's wrong with my face?"
Rodimus: "It's basically a punch magnet."
Tailgate: "So rude! Cyclonus, did you hear that?"
Cyclonus: "No. Was it about your face?"
Notes
[edit]Continuity notes
[edit]- Elegant Chaos is the third part of a trilogy of flashback stories, following Chaos Theory and Shadowplay.<ref>TransMissions Episode 94 – James Roberts MTMTE Elegant Chaos Interview 36:00 to 36:07</ref>

- The first time period our heroes jump to is that of the first chapter of the "Shadowplay" trilogy, from issue #9, while the second is that of the first part of "Chaos Theory", from issue #22 of the 2009-2011 ongoing series. Two pages from each issue are reprinted in context.
- The billboard-airship that Rewind hitches a lift on was seen in issue #9, and can be seen again in the reprinted pages.
- Cyclonus apologises for kicking Tailgate back in issue #4.
- We get another look at "Magnus-vision", the way Magnus sees the world around him, seen before in the 2012 annual.
- As Brainstorm flies away from Maccadam's, we see two 'bots carrying a body along the bridge below him. The corpse is that of Senator Sherma, who is about to be hung from the bridge, as we saw in issue #9; logically, it would follow that the two 'bots carrying it are the unnamed killers from issue #10, before their sparks are implanted in the bodies of Streaker and Fallout.
- Rung has previously been described as a "historical constant" by Rewind in issue #11, because of his presence at many important points in Cybertronian history. It now appears that this reputation is partly a product of the present-day Rung travelling back in time to these points in time, rather than his just happening to be there in the regular flow of history—we find out this issue that the Rung who appeared in the past sequences in "Chaos Theory" and "Shadowplay" were both the present-day Rung, in turn validating last issue's implication that the actions Rodimus's team are taking are and were always part of the timeline they knew.
- In-keeping with that, now we know why Rung didn't have any memory of the bar-room brawl when Megatron brought it up back in issue #28 - for him, it hadn't happened yet.
- Previously, issue 9's scene of Rung assembling a model of the Lost Light seemed to imply a history to the ship, which was further hinted at when Nightbeat appeared to recognize the vessel in Dark Cybertron Finale. Now we understand that Nightbeat was remembering the model and recognizing its anachronistic nature.
- Past-Rung's scooter is his wheeled backpack, which we learned was a separate attachment back in issue #22.
- The song that past-Rung whistles as Brainstorm ambushes him is "The Empyrean Suite", the enigmatic piece of music with sinister connotations of which we are not yet aware, previously mentioned in issues #8 and #16. The notes in Rung's speech balloon match those when Swerve played the tune in #16.
- Chromedome and Rewind stargaze, imagining constellations in the shape of Prowl being beaten up, a habit of theirs mentioned in issue #16.
- Rewind brings up his and Dominus Ambus's search for Luna 1, originally discussed in issue #12.
- The cadets mock Rung, sarcastically asking "Who are you, then? One of the Knights of Cybertron? The last of the Progenitors? Alpha Trion's long-lost spark brother?" Turns out he's literally God.
- Rung groans "always the head" after he gets clobbered, hearkening back to the grave cranial injuries he took in issue #6.
- When the police arrive to break up the bar fight, the vehicle they arrive in appears to be Roller, or at least a 'bot with his alternate mode. The policebots themselves share a body-type with Springarm and Wheelarch.
- The Heavies and their history with Whirl were originally introduced in issue #6. Chromedome's encounter with them took place in issue #11, in which they, Kroma and Macabre raided the police station in order to capture Senator Shockwave. In the issue, Kroma noted in passing that Shockwave's whereabouts had been revealed through a tip-off from parties unknown; the Heavies go conspicuously un-mindwiped at the end of this story, and hear Chromedome tell Whirl about the attack and Shockwave's presence. Could they have been the source of the information?
- Whirl kills the Heavies' unnamed cohort (who we've never seen before, for retroactively obvious reasons) with the curious weapon he took from Brainstorm's armory last issue.
- We learn that last issue's events, in 1st Cycle 502, took place on the same day as Megatron Origin #1.
- Though he has always been unforthcoming about his origins, we know that Megatron, as a Point One Percenter, should have a green spark, but the one seen inside his half-built frame on the final page of this issue is the traditional blue. However, we very much doubt that's an error...
Transformers references
[edit]- Rodimus keeps his eye on the Rodion police station using a telescopic visor that slides down out of his helmet over his eyes, just like the one he used to zoom in on the captured shuttle in The Transformers: The Movie.
- A generic working the waterway is colored like Cosmos.
- The train track that Chromedome rides is labelled "C-131", the Japanese ID number of Raiden, combined form of the TRAINbots.
Real-life references
[edit]- This issue's title, "Stet", is a Latin word meaning "let it stand", used in proofreading to indicate that a previously marked change is to be ignored, much like Brainstorm's attempts to change time.
- When trying to recall Quark's name, Rung believes it might be "[[wikipedia:{{#if:|:}}QWERTY|{{#if:Qwerty|Qwerty|QWERTY}}]]", after the most common modern-day keyboard layout.
- The address of Rung's wellbeing clinic is NX-74205, the registry number of the USS Defiant on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
- To add even more to the image of Jesus established in #21 of this series in which he's literally crucified for the sins of others, Rodimus refers to the past in which he was not born yet as P.R: Pre-Rodimus, similar to how we refer to everything that happened before year 1 as B.C: Before Christ.
- The reprint of Chaos Theory and Shadowplay scenes was inspired by Back to the Future Part II, which showed scenes from the first film from a different angle.
Errors
[edit]- The credits on the inside front cover mistakenly claim that the reprinted pages of Megatron and Rung's bar-room escapades are from issue #20 of the ongoing, rather than #22.
- On the same page, Kotteri's variant cover (see below) is listed as a "30th Anniversary cover", but the 30th anniversary is over; per the The Transformers #37, the third variant should be back to being a "retailer incentive" cover.
- The bar brawl and Megatron's arrest are dated here to 4th Cycle 499; issue #28 previously gave a date of 4th Cycle 496 for those same events.
- On page 5, panel 5 Percy is missing his microscope mount.
Other trivia
[edit]
- Originally intended for release in January 2015, month-long delays afflicting multiple IDW titles saw this issue pushed to the first week of February.
- The pages reprinted from previous issues are included in addition to the regular 22 pages of story, making for a 26-page story.
- This issue features the first visible instance of Whirl's original, pre-Empurata face.
- Roberts had vaguely planned for a "Let's Kill Hitler" time-travel story for ages but Megatron becoming captain turned it into a more "multi-layered" story.<ref>TransMissions Episode 94 – James Roberts MTMTE Elegant Chaos Interview 43:20 to 44:10</ref>
Soundtrack
[edit]- "Where Damage Isn't Already Done" by [[wikipedia:{{#if:|:}}The Radio Dept.|{{#if:||The Radio Dept.}}]]<ref>{{#if: MTMTE #37. Song #1: 'Where Damage Isn't Already Done' by the Radio Dept. https://t.co/GVscxFMfEl |"MTMTE #37. Song #1: 'Where Damage Isn't Already Done' by the Radio Dept. https://t.co/GVscxFMfEl"—|}}{{#if: https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560590822417367040 |James Roberts|James Roberts}}{{#if: Twitter |, Twitter|}}{{#if: |, ""|}}{{#if: 2015 |, 2015{{#if: 01 |/{{#switch:{{#len:01}}|1=001|01}}{{#if: 29|/{{#switch:{{#len:29}}|1=029|29}}|}}}}|}}{{#if: https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560590822417367040 ||}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560590822417367040%7C7%7C11}}%7Cweb.archive= (archive link)|}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560590822417367040%7C8%7C11}}%7Cweb.archive= (archive link)|}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560590822417367040%7C7%7C10}}%7Carchive.is= (archive link)|}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560590822417367040%7C8%7C10}}%7Carchive.is= (archive link)|}}{{#if: | (dead link)}}</ref>
- "The Certainty of Chance" by [[wikipedia:{{#if:|:}}The Divine Comedy (band)|{{#if:The Divine Comedy|The Divine Comedy|The Divine Comedy (band)}}]]<ref>{{#if: MTMTE #37. Song #2: The Certainty of Chance by the Divine Comedy https://t.co/8oDPBALH23 (100+ musicians on this one, not that size matters) |"MTMTE #37. Song #2: The Certainty of Chance by the Divine Comedy https://t.co/8oDPBALH23 (100+ musicians on this one, not that size matters)"—|}}{{#if: https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560591817847345153 |James Roberts|James Roberts}}{{#if: Twitter |, Twitter|}}{{#if: |, ""|}}{{#if: 2015 |, 2015{{#if: 01 |/{{#switch:{{#len:01}}|1=001|01}}{{#if: 29|/{{#switch:{{#len:29}}|1=029|29}}|}}}}|}}{{#if: https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560591817847345153 ||}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560591817847345153%7C7%7C11}}%7Cweb.archive= (archive link)|}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560591817847345153%7C8%7C11}}%7Cweb.archive= (archive link)|}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560591817847345153%7C7%7C10}}%7Carchive.is= (archive link)|}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560591817847345153%7C8%7C10}}%7Carchive.is= (archive link)|}}{{#if: | (dead link)}}</ref>
- "The Psychiatrist Is In" from [[wikipedia:{{#if:|:}}God Help the Girl|{{#if:||God Help the Girl}}]]<ref>{{#if: MTMTE #37. Song/clip #3: 'The Psychiatrist Is In' - a scene from God Help The Girl: https://t.co/ssPOa0VIAZ |"MTMTE #37. Song/clip #3: 'The Psychiatrist Is In' - a scene from God Help The Girl: https://t.co/ssPOa0VIAZ"—|}}{{#if: https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560594060902408193 |James Roberts|James Roberts}}{{#if: Twitter |, Twitter|}}{{#if: |, ""|}}{{#if: 2015 |, 2015{{#if: 01 |/{{#switch:{{#len:01}}|1=001|01}}{{#if: 29|/{{#switch:{{#len:29}}|1=029|29}}|}}}}|}}{{#if: https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560594060902408193 ||}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560594060902408193%7C7%7C11}}%7Cweb.archive= (archive link)|}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560594060902408193%7C8%7C11}}%7Cweb.archive= (archive link)|}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560594060902408193%7C7%7C10}}%7Carchive.is= (archive link)|}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/560594060902408193%7C8%7C10}}%7Carchive.is= (archive link)|}}{{#if: | (dead link)}}</ref>
- "A Europewide Search for Love" by [[wikipedia:{{#if:|:}}Ballboy (band)|{{#if:Ballboy|Ballboy|Ballboy (band)}}]]<ref>{{#if: Here's another song to accompany Wednesday's issue. It's sad but uplifting, which is what I want MTMTE to be: https://t.co/Uyz60VaMzf |"Here's another song to accompany Wednesday's issue. It's sad but uplifting, which is what I want MTMTE to be: https://t.co/Uyz60VaMzf"—|}}{{#if: https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/562346415645814784 |James Roberts|James Roberts}}{{#if: Twitter |, Twitter|}}{{#if: |, ""|}}{{#if: 2015 |, 2015{{#if: 02 |/{{#switch:{{#len:02}}|1=002|02}}{{#if: 02|/{{#switch:{{#len:02}}|1=002|02}}|}}}}|}}{{#if: https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/562346415645814784 ||}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/562346415645814784%7C7%7C11}}%7Cweb.archive= (archive link)|}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/562346415645814784%7C8%7C11}}%7Cweb.archive= (archive link)|}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/562346415645814784%7C7%7C10}}%7Carchive.is= (archive link)|}}{{#switch:{{#sub:https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/562346415645814784%7C8%7C10}}%7Carchive.is= (archive link)|}}{{#if: | (dead link)}}</ref>
Foreign Localization
[edit]Swedish
- Title: "Sofistikerat kaos del 2: Låt stå" ("Sophisticated Chaos Part 2: Stet")
Covers (3)
[edit]- Regular cover: Impactor, by Alex Milne and Josh Perez
- Subscription cover: The Heavies, by Nick Roche and Josh Burcham
- Retailer incentive cover: Skids, Cyclonus, and a glum Tailgate enjoy a drink, by Kotteri
-
Impactor's about to screw someone.
-
Heavy describe more than their personalities.
-
Tailgate just got the bill.
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[edit]- More than Meets the Eye #38
- The Transformers #37
- Drift - Empire of Stone #3
- Machi Koro (back cover)
Reprints
[edit]- The Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye Volume 7 (May 13, 2015) ISBN 1631403273 / ISBN 978-1631403279
- Collects More than Meets the Eye issues #34–38.
- Bonus material includes covers of each issue.
- Trade paperback format.
- The Transformers: The IDW Collection Phase Two: Volume 8 (December 5, 2018) ISBN 1684053722 / ISBN 978-1684053728
- Collects More than Meets the Eye issues #35–38 & #39–40, The Transformers (2012) issues #35–38, Punishment issues #1–5, and Drift - Empire of Stone issues #1–4.
- Hardcover format.
- Transformers: The Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 63: Elegant Chaos (June 12, 2019)
- Collects More than Meets the Eye issues #35–42.
- Bonus material includes a cover gallery and a forward by Simon Furman.
- Hardcover format.
- Transformers: Du sköna nya värld (November, 2022)
- Collects More than Meets the Eye issues #28–38 & #40.
- Swedish reprint. Hardcover format.
-
More Than Meets the Eye Volume 7 – cover art by Alex Milne and Josh Perez
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The IDW Collection Phase Two: Volume 8 – cover art by Marcelo Matere and Tom B. Long
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The Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 63: Elegant Chaos – cover art by Don Figueroa (Trailbreaker) and Alex Milne (retro)
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Du sköna nya värld – cover art by Casey Coller and Joana Lafuente





