The Dying of the Light Part 2: The Sun in Flight

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« The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye #51 »

"Sixty! We dropped at least 60, wouldn't you say?"
"That leaves only 3,940."
"The Dying of the Light
Part 2: The Sun in Flight
Publisher IDW Publishing
First published March 30, 2016
Cover date March 2016
Written by James Roberts
Pencils by Alex Milne
Colors by Joana Lafuente
Letters by Tom B. Long
Editor John Barber
Continuity 2005 IDW continuity
Chronology Current era (2016)

Rodimus and his stranded comrades weigh their options as the D.J.D. close in.

Synopsis

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He started retreatin' and readin' every treatise on the shelf.

On the now-deceased Necrobot's planet, the stranded members of the Lost Light crew take shelter within the Necrobot's fortress as the forces of the Decepticon Justice Division pound on its walls. Presently, however, the attack stops, and a message is left burned into ground outside warning that the killers will return at sunset to finish the job. Tarn and Deathsaurus return to the Peaceful Tyranny, where Tarn shows off his collection of deceased miners (whose bodies were used by Terminus to smuggle Megatron's writings back from Messatine millions of years ago), and explains to an impatient Deathsaurus that they have granted the Autobots a temporary reprieve only as a form of vicarious torture, leaving them to work themselves into a frenzy of fear and anger before they are slain.

With communications cut off, the Autobots search the Necrobot's fortress from top to bottom, hoping to find weapons or a means of escape. Velocity and Swerve discover that the Necrobot's body has crumbled to dust, and find a key among the remains. While they leave to search for the door it opens, the others examine the only other promising discovery they have made: the quantum-tech teleport booth used by the Necrobot to travel across the galaxy. Nightbeat ascertains that it only has enough power to get them to a nearby asteroid, but that is good enough for everyone, and they are all about to travel through it when Velocity, Swerve, and Nautica return to reveal what they have discovered behind the mystery door—dozens of life support tubes containing comatose organic beings. Knowing that the D.J.D. will slaughter the organics if they leave them unguarded, the group talks things out; Brainstorm believes that all the good they have done, and will go on to do if they survive, balances the cosmic scales enough for them to leave the organics to their fate, but Megatron refuses to abandon any living creatures, and delivers an impassioned speech that convinces all assembled to stay and help him protect them. Swerve proposes stealing the D.J.D.'s ship and using it to transport themselves and all the pods to safety, so Ravage volunteers to leave the safety of the fortress and sniff out the ship's location. Before departing, he offers Megatron a communicator, and urges him to "talk to him"...

Aboard the Peaceful Tyranny, Tarn and Deathsaurus talk strategy with Tesarus, Vos, and Nickel, while the other members of the group establish a base camp elsewhere on the planet. Tarn dismisses the notion that the assembled Autobots could pose any threat, but Tesarus recognizes that the Necrobot's fortress has a storm-shield to protect it from extreme weather conditions, which could, with sufficient power, be upgraded to hold the D.J.D. off for days. Tarn insists there is no such power supply on the planet, but before an argument can kick off, his personal communicator rings—a communicator that only Megatron has the number for.

Megatron arranges to meet Tarn alone, and mounts a space scooter the Autobots have found in the fortress to travel to their meeting point. Before he leaves, Rodimus asks him why his famous hatred of organics has suddenly ceased to be an issue; Megatron explains that, when struck with the psychic attack earlier, he heard the screams of all the organic races he had obliterated during the war, and cannot live with allowing any more of them to die. Megatron then heads out to meet Tarn in the massive field of flowers surrounding his own statue, where he calmly and willingly surrenders to the D.J.D. leader.

Everyone give it up for America's favorite fighting French-Ten!

Elsewhere, Ravage follows the scent of the D.J.D., but ends up locating their base camp, rather than their ship. He is also quick to realize that he has been followed by Ten, who has been desperately trying to help all this time, but has been repeatedly ignored and told off by Rodimus. An exasperated Ravage pulls a dirty move, asking Ten to stand up; immediately upon doing so, the Legislator is spotted by the Decepticons below, and they come charging up the hill to attack him. With Ten serving as a distraction, Ravage heads down to the base camp, certain he can smell a ship somewhere...

Back at the fortress, the other Autobots finally notice Ten's absence, and discover a message he has left for them: a pile of the Necrobot's spark-flowers, sitting next to the storm-shield generator, alongside a drawing of Trailcutter. The message is clear—Ten has realized that the flowers can be used to power up the shield!

Ten fights bravely, but is blasted, burned, blinded, and even loses limbs to the relentless Decepticon horde. Before the fatal blow can be struck, however, salvation arrives in the form of the occupants of the ship Ravage detected... Ratchet and Drift have returned!

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(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Autobots Decepticons Others

Quotes

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"Okay, so, the bad news is that we're comprehensively weaponless, our defenses amount to a giant umbrella, and the only transport in this paper-thin 'fortress' is a space scooter so unconvincing it needs the words 'space scooter' painted on it."
"What's the good news?"
"Who said anything about good news?"

—Rodimus and Tailgate


"I'm not trying to set an example, if that's what you mean. I've made my choice, Rodimus. You're free to make yours. You're all free to make yours. Anyone who wishes to leave should leave. No questions need be asked, no reasons given. The same if you want to stay. You don't have to justify your actions, or explain your motives, or invite others to scrutinize your conscience. Either you stay or you go. You don't need anyone's permission. You don't need anyone's blessing. Make whatever decision you wish to make—but make it for yourself. And let me assure you: there is nothing in this room but understanding."

—Megatron


"I saw a storm-shield generator in there. The Necrobot must've used it to protect the glass ceiling."
"It's called an atrium."
"No, it's definitely a storm-shield."

—Tesarus and Nickel


"Now then, in between getting your arses kicked... perhaps you could tell us what we've missed."

—Ratchet

Notes

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Continuity notes

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"Tarn is not the only crazy fanboy of our former GLORIOUS leader!"
  • Lugnut is a member of Deathsaurus's army. He's previously appeared in IDW continuity in Autocracy #10, and a guy loosely looking like him appeared as a member of the Titan Hunters in Spotlight: Trailcutter, but don't sweat the details too much; in all these appearances, he's really little more than an Easter egg, the latter being more of a reference to the original Animated character than specifically to the G1-era character from the 2010 toyline.
  • We got a glimpse of Tarn's collection of dead generic "miner" Transformers in issue #49. They are revealed to hold the answer to the long-standing question of how Terminus was smuggling Megatron's writings off of Messatine, originally raised in issue #34: he was arranging for the works to be carved onto their internal organs before they were sent back to Cybertron. Hence, as a huge Megatron fanboy, Tarn collects them.
  • Tarn remarked that he had the first edition of Towards Peace mounted on his wall back in issue #39. He wasn't lying.
  • Tarn says that Terminus has been unfairly “airbrushed out of history”. It was Megatron himself who was at least partly behind that, thanks to his going back and removing the dedication to Terminus in every copy of Towards Peace, as he revealed to Rung in their therapy session.
  • Rodimus makes a quick reference to his being an "ex-Matrix bearer," which occurred during the "Space Opera" storyline in the 2009-2011 ongoing series.
  • None of the characters have any knowledge of it, of course, but a similar row of life support pods containing organic lifeforms was previously seen in issue #46. These pods have some mysterious connection to the gear-like symbol that the cast discussed last issue.
  • Megatron's decision to risk his life for organics plays off issue #33, where Megatron is disgruntled at the very concept that he'd have to risk himself for non-mechanicals and asks where he signed up for this. Back then, Skids made it clear that if redemption meant anything, Megatron would risk it; back then, Megatron had to be berated into doing it but a year and a half later, he's the one fortifying everyone else.
  • Tesarus recalls encountering a storm-shield when the D.J.D. went after Heretech, a story we first heard about in issue #39.
  • When listing off the races whose voices he heard screaming, Megatron mentions the "Magisterians." Presumably, these are the inhabitants of Magisteria VI, who we saw in issue #46. See "Transformers references" and "errors" for more.
  • He also lists the Nibarians, whom Bludgeon previously mentioned killing in "The Hunting Party".
  • They're back, baby! Drift left the series way back in issue #16, while Ratchet went off to find him in issue #40. They found each other in the Empire of Stone mini-series, and it looks like they've been doing some adventuring since, as both have brand new body designs. Drift's even re-donned the Autobot symbol, suggesting the egregious continuity wonkery of Empire of Stone is being quietly ignored and he's an Autobot again without any messing about.
  • Alex Milne stated that Drift's new "face paint" is to honor Dai Atlas,[1] leader of the Circle of Light who were responsible for Drift's "enlightenment" and side-switching, who died in issue #21.

Transformers references

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Real-life references

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  • As with the previous chapter, this issue's title (and the title of the multi-parter itself) is taken from the poem "Do not go gentle into that good night," by Dylan Thomas.
  • Tarn refers to his corpse collection as "first editions", as any collector of books would do.

Errors

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  • Brainstorm counts sixteen present, but there are actually seventeen. Of course, this might not be an error; he could be excluding Ten (because Brainstorm's a jerk), Ravage (the only Decepticon present, who has never actually helped anyone) or maybe even Rong (Wrung? Y'know, that guy...).
  • Megatron says that all the races he mentions are extinct, but there were obviously living Magisterians kicking about very recently, as the Scavengers visited their planet and used holomatter avatars of them. Unless it wasn't Magisteria VI Megatron scoured of life, but another planet in the system. A Torkuli also made a cameo appearance in "Cybertronian Homesick Blues", so Megs missed one.
  • Megatron calls 'em "Torkulians," but per "Webworld," the inhabitants of Torkulon are "Torkuli." This is corrected in the trade paperback.

Other notes

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  • Another overt example of Brainstorm's occasionally-mentioned British accent: he says "maths" instead of "math." Less expected: Ratchet saying "arses" instead of "asses."

Soundtrack

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For all of "The Dying of the Light":

For this issue alone:

Covers (3)

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  • Tarn's about to have some fun.
    Tarn's about to have some fun.
  • Someone other than Tarn has had a REALLY bad day.
    Someone other than Tarn has had a REALLY bad day.
  • Tarn the impaler.
    Tarn the impaler.

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Reprints

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  • The Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye Volume 10 (October 5, 2016) ISBN 1631407163 / ISBN 978-1631407161
    • Collects More than Meets the Eye issues #50–55.
    • Bonus material includes covers of each issue.
    • Trade paperback format.
  • More Than Meets the Eye Volume 10 – cover art by Alex Milne and Joana Lafuente
    More Than Meets the Eye Volume 10 – cover art by Alex Milne and Joana Lafuente
  • The Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 72: The Dying of the Light – cover art by Don Figueroa (Cyclonus) and Alex Milne (retro)
    The Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 72: The Dying of the Light – cover art by Don Figueroa (Cyclonus) and Alex Milne (retro)
  • The IDW Collection Phase Two: Volume 11 – cover art by Marcelo Matere
    The IDW Collection Phase Two: Volume 11 – cover art by Marcelo Matere

References

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  1. ↑ "Yes :D you are the first to mention it :) it's was done to honor Dai Atlas."—Alex Milne, Twitter, 2016/04/03
  2. ↑ "The first song from MTMTE #51 is 'The Ship Song' by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds: https://t.co/JzBCHRAbf5"—James Roberts, Twitter, 2016/03/22
  3. ↑ "Second song from MTMTE #51 and - shock! It's from the same artist AND the same album: https://t.co/rLiJuFdfSk"—James Roberts, Twitter, 2016/03/22
  4. ↑ "Last song to pair with MTMTE #51 - it had to happen eventually - is this little number from Simon & Garfunkel: https://t.co/hQRZk9gdxQ"—James Roberts, Twitter, 2016/03/22
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