Editing Dissolution Part 2: Anomie

{{Comicstory
|seriesissue=''[[The Transformers: Lost Light|The Transformers:<br>Lost Light]]'' #2
|prev=Dissolution Part 1: Some Other Cybertron
|next=Dissolution Part 3: A World Misplaced
|image=LL2_regcvr.jpg
|title="Dissolution Part 2: Anomie"
|caption=
|publisher=[[IDW Publishing]]
|date=[[February 1]], [[2017]]
|coverdate=January 2017
|written by=[[James Roberts]]
|art by=[[Jack Lawrence]]
|colors by=[[Joana Lafuente]]
|letters by=[[Tom B. Long]]
|editor=[[Carlos Guzman]]
|continuity=[[IDW Generation 1 continuity|IDW continuity]]
|chronology=[[IDW timeline|Current era]]
}}
'''While Rodimus's team gets to grips with the Functionist Universe, Tailgate's increasingly aggressive behavior lands Anode in hot water.'''

==Synopsis==
Confronted by [[Twelve-of-Twelve]] and his [[Functionary|Functionaries]], [[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rodimus]] and company realize they have wound up in the [[Functionist Universe|alternate universe]] previously glimpsed by [[Rewind (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rewind]]—a world ruled by the [[Functionist Council]], where [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]] never lived to start the [[Great War (G1)|war]]. Believing them to be members of the [[Anti-Vocationist League]], like the other prisoners currently in his clutches, Twelve-of-Twelve has them arrested; Megatron instructs everyone to go along peacefully, hoping the rest of the council can be reasoned with. After a Functionary destroys their "teleport den," the group is paraded through the streets, where Megatron observes in disgust as the populace fawns over Twelve-of-Twelve. Rodimus is naturally in a bad mood about the whole situation, and [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Minimus Ambus]] only succeeds in annoying him more when he tries to sympathize. [[Drift (G1)|Drift]] and [[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]] observe several large screens around the city displaying countdown clocks and wonder how they are connected to the "Day of Revelation" mentioned by their captor, but Drift's attention is soon diverted to a colossal, building-sized statue of [[Primus]], bearing the inscription "Survive and Thrive" at its base. Haunted by the phrase, Drift tells Ratchet about the vision he experienced just before they left: a vision that included [[Pharma (G1)|Pharma]], [[Grimlock (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Grimlock]], [[Sparkeater (creature)|sparkeaters]], the legendary "[[Phantom Fleet]]" of lost [[Worldsweeper]]s... and those words, and many others, scrawled in multiple ancient dialects. Drift also begins to describe the "rain" in his vision, but before he can finish, a grenade clatters into the street and blows up in the faces of the Functionaries leading the group. The [[Anti-Vocationist League]] has arrived to save its captive members!

On [[Necroworld]], [[Anode]] finds [[Lug (IDW)|Lug]] lounging by the Memorial to the Disappeared, relaxing after the difficult business of apologizing to everyone for Anode's lack of a social filter. Anode claims not to care what any of them think, but Lug knows she's lying, as she hid her original function from [[Swerve (G1)|Swerve]] when asked. After a bit of poking, Anode admits that she's interested in the quest for [[Cyberutopia]], thinking it might be nice to settle down there; Lug retorts with a laugh that Anode isn't interested in "settling down," but in plundering its treasures. Just then, the body of [[Fangry (G1)|Fangry]] comes flying through the air and crashes into the memorial, followed swiftly by a furious [[Tailgate (G1)|Tailgate]], who has beaten Fangry to a pulp for his attack on [[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]]. Anode attempts to intervene, but Tailgate backhands her away, inadvertently hurling her against a chunk of debris that impales her through the torso. As Fangry's fellow Decepticons beat a hasty retreat when Tailgate snarls at them, Cyclonus arrives on the scene and reproaches the little 'bot for his actions. In an attempt to make Tailgate understand the enormity and severity of the change his new powers represent, Cyclonus takes him to the site of the group's battle with the [[Decepticon Justice Division]], still littered with the bodies of the many, ''many'' Decepticons Tailgate killed. Tailgate thinks he is merely attempting to make him feel guilty for causing so much death, and argues that it was kill-or-be-killed; Cyclonus tries to make him understand that it is evidence of how much his strength is growing, potentially to a point beyond his control, and how fast his increasing powers are burning through his [[energon]]. Tailgate tries to argue otherwise... at which point, his energon reserves deplete and he collapses.

Back in the [[Censere|Necrobot]]'s fortress, Anode awakes with a start in the med-bay, roused by nightmarish recollections of her old life. Her wounds have been patched by another of the "Disappeared," [[Kaput]], who responded to Lug's calls for help. But no sooner has the medic introduced himself than [[Velocity (G1)|Velocity]] storms into the med-bay and pins Anode down, announcing that she is making a citizen's arrest. Just as Anode had feared, Velocity remembers her—as a thief. While [[Swerve (G1)|Swerve]] goes to check the life-support pods and make sure there aren't any other late-to-revive stragglers like Anode and Lug in them (with a strange remark to [[Nautica (G1)|Nautica]] on the way out, tapping his neck and saying he "needs another" something when he gets back because he is "starting to feel it again"), Velocity produces the "snowflake" treasure previously found by Anode and demands they talk about "the Lighthouse..."

[[File:Anomie-AntiVocationistLeague.jpg|thumb|right|300px|]]
The Anti-Vocationist League, it turns out, are a bunch of total wimps who can't put up any kind of fight against the Functionaries. At Rodimus's urging, Megatron breaks his bonds, frees the rest of the team, then takes command of the situation, directing everyone in a brief, dramatic, one-sided battle that sees them emerge victorious. Twelve-of-Twelve boasts that they still cannot stop the broadcast that is about to begin, but when [[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Chromedome]] snags him around the throat with a chain, all his bravado disappears and he puts in a distress call to be teleported out. As he vanishes, [[Terminus (G1)|Terminus]] marvels over Megatron's leadership skills, while Rodimus asks the AVL leader [[Clicker]] what the next step of his plan is. Clicker explains they will be using a concealed matter transporter nearby to relocate to the AVL's base of operations: Cyberutopia. Rodimus stares gape-mouthed at Clicker, but before he can ask any questions, the countdown timers all reach zero, and are replaced on the screens with an image of Functionist Council member [[Six-of-Twelve]]. The Day of Revelation has come, Six-of-Twelve tells everyone watching: the day on which the Functionists reveal to the world what the alternate mode of "The Useless One"–their prisoner, the rebel icon [[Rung (G1)|Rung]]–is for!

==Featured characters==
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
{{{!}}border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="background:transparent"
{{!}}-
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Drift (G1)|Drift]] (2)
*[[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rodimus]] (4)
*[[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]] (5)
*[[Rewind (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rewind]] (6)
*[[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]] (9)
*[[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Chromedome]] (13)
*[[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Minimus Ambus]] (14)
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Tailgate (G1)|Tailgate]] (18)
*[[Kaput]] (23)
*[[Velocity (G1)|Velocity]] (25)
*[[Swerve (G1)|Swerve]] (26)
*[[Nautica (G1)|Nautica]] (27)
{{!}}}
|c2=
*[[Fangry (G1)|Fangry]] (12)
*[[Rapidfire]] (20)
*Two other "Disappeared" Decepticons (19, 21)
*[[Jack-Knife]]'s corpse (24)

|c4=
{{{!}}border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="background:transparent"
{{!}}-
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Roller (IDW)|Roller]] (1)
*[[Terminus (G1)|Terminus]] (3)
*[[Twelve-of-Twelve]] (7)
*Multiple [[Functionary|Functionaries]] (8)
*[[Anode]] (10)
*[[Lug (IDW)|Lug]] (11)
*Two [[Lunabot]]s (15)
{{!}}style="background:transparent;border:0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*Other [[Anti-Vocationist League]]rs (16)
*[[Clicker]] (17)
*[[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]] (22)
*[[Six-of-Twelve]] (28)
*Functionist Universe [[Rung (G1)|Rung]] (29)
{{!}}}
}}

==Quotes==
"Be careful. When you lie to me, you lie to '''God.'''"
:—'''Twelve-of-Twelve''' threatens our heroes


"The ''Lost Light''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s been stolen; we're '''once again''' without a map to Cyberutopia; and now, to top it all, we're trapped in entirely the wrong universe. We've never been further from our goal. '''Ever.''' In fact, it's hard to escape the conclusion that we'd be closer to finding the '''Knights of Cybertron''' if we hadn't started looking for them in the first place."<br>
"What was that? What was that supposed to be? The opposite of a '''pep talk,''' that's what that was. God! I was angry, now I'm angry and '''depressed.''' Can I be chained to someone else, please?"
:—'''Minimus Ambus''' gets on '''Rodimus'''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s nerves


"Ah. Okay. Oooh-kay. I get it. Bad guy or not, he was a '''person.''' Point taken. Lesson learned. Except '''no.''' Because it was '''him or me''', Cyclonus, I didn't kill him for '''fun!''' And if I'm '''honest?''' I don't think you get to play that card. I mean, how many people have '''you''' killed? '''Innocent''' people. How often do you think about '''them?'''"<br>
"Every day."
:—'''Tailgate''' and '''Cyclonus'''


"I'm making a '''citizen's arrest.'''"<br>
''(beat)''<br>
"Who knows how to make a citizen's arrest?"
:—'''Velocity'''


"The '''A.V.L.''' would have you believe that not everyone has a purpose; that Primus built some of us - '''one''' of us - without a specific function in mind. 'All Hail The Useless One'. No more. Because today...today we tell you what the Useless One is ''for''."
:—'''Six-of-Twelve''' chews the scenery.

==Notes==
===Continuity notes===
*Rewind references the "Black Box Consortia," the Functionist Universe version of the [[Black Block Consortia]] who were previously mentioned in [[The Custom-Made Now - An Elegant Chaos Prologue|''More than Meets the Eye'' #35]]. This finally confirms that wasn't just a typo!
*Oddly enough, Tailgate and Cyclonus' current relationship parallels their dynamic from the beginning of the comic. But this time, it's ''Tailgate'' who's the violent and powerful bot that needs to calm down.
*Primus's statue renders the character as he appeared in [[Primus: You, Me, and Other Revelations|the ''More than Meets the Eye'' 2012 annual]].
*Drift mentioned having another vision recently last issue; we here learn that he was not referring to his original vision, which inspired him to join the ''[[Lost Light]]'' crew, but rather to a new premonition that guided him and Ratchet to Necroworld, which took place off-panel prior to [[The Dying of the Light Part 2: The Sun in Flight|''More than Meets the Eye'' #51]].
*The Worldsweepers seen in Drift's vision last issue are identified by him as the [[Phantom Fleet]], which disappeared in the [[Dark Nebula]]. The Nebula was previously mentioned in [[Nothing Will Ever Be the Same Again!|the ''More than Meets the Eye: Revolution'' one-shot]] as the home of the [[Dire Wraith]]s.
*The Anti-Vocationist League members seen in this issue include two [[Lunabot]]s, as seen before in issue #35. Also present is a memory stick Transformer - they were wiped out by the Council in a [[mass recall]] at the very end of issue #35. Clearly, at least one survived...
*Kaput previously appeared in [[Omega's Conundrum|''Spotlight: Orion Pax'']]. His inclusion among the "Disappeared" tells us that the Necrobot didn't keep his list in chronological order, because Kaput was known to be active until just a few years ago, having helped to repair [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] following the events of ''[[The Transformers: Last Stand of the Wreckers|Last Stand of the Wreckers]]'', according to "[[Zero Point]]."
*Swerve's remarks to Nautica as he leaves indicate he is undergoing a process that temporarily keeps him from "feeling" something. The next issue would clarify that he is referring to "mood suppressants".
*When Six-of-Twelve previously appeared in issue #35, he had a normal-shaped head, but as Chromedome notes, it has since been redesigned to resemble the [[Matrix of Leadership]]. The fate of the Matrix is unknown in the Functionist Universe; without the war to bring [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]] to prominence, it presumably must still reside in the [[Undergrid]] where it was concealed millennia ago, per [[Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|''More than Meets the Eye'' #19]].

===Transformers references===
*Continuing with the standard set by issue #35 the crowd scenes set within the Functionist Universe feature Easter egg appearances by lots of characters from the [[Unicron Trilogy]], including [[Inferno (Energon)|''Energon'' Inferno]], [[Smokescreen (Armada)|''Armada'' Smokescreen]], [[Strongarm (Energon)|''Energon'' Strongarm]], [[Metroplex (Cybertron)|''Cybertron'' Metroplex]], [[Scavenger (Armada)|''Armada'' Scavenger]], [[Quickmix (Cybertron)|''Cybertron'' Quickmix]], [[Menasor (Cybertron)|''Cybertron'' Menasor]] (with a proper face), [[Landmine (Energon)|''Cybertron'' Landmine]], and [[Smokescreen (Armada)|''Armada'' Hoist]], as well as [[Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2001 franchise)|''Robots in Disguise'']] characters [[Grimlock (RID 2001)|Grimlock]] and [[Hightower (RID)|Hightower]]. The two Lunabots seen among the Anti-Vocationist League remain based on [[Jetfire (Armada)|''Energon'' Jetfire]], just as the one seen in issue #35 was.
*The two nameless Decepticons who flee Tailgate's wrath alongside [[Rapidfire]] are based on the [[Divebomb (Energon)|''Energon'' Divebomb]] and [[Hardtop (Cybertron)|''Cybertron'' Hardtop]] molds, with new color schemes. As a dune buggy, "Hardtop" seems to be in [[Beachcomber (G1)|Beachcomber]]-blues-and-greys.

===Real life references===
*The title of this issue, "Anomie," is a word meaning the "lack of the usual social or ethical standards in an individual or group."

===Errors===
*On the regular cover, Cyclonus's [[Great Sword]] is ''way'' too short. He's not holding it an angle that would induce foreshortening.
*Twelve-of-Twelve gives the date as "1st Cycle 3041" in order to be consistent with last issue, but as noted in last issue's article, that's way off what has most recently been provided as the date for the present day.
*On page 5, panel 1, there's a little 'bot standing on the rooftop with a crane-arm on his back. The tip of his crane arm is cut off where it meets the edge of the roof, because the roof was apparently "pasted" onto the art. 
*On page 13, panel 2, the edge of Tailgate's first speech balloon isn't properly aligned with the edge of the panel.

===Other trivia===
*Originally solicited for release in January 2017, this issue arrives a little late, slipping into the first week of February.
* [[Shock (G1)|Shock]]'s name is visible on the Necrobot's memorial, but he didn't disappear; he was killed by a sparkeater and his body was found in [[Liars, A to D Part 2: Hangers On|''More than Meets the Eye'' #2]]. It was his fellow [[Duobot]], [[Ore]], who mysteriously disappeared in the 2012 annual. Rather than consider this a mistake, we'll assume it's a subtle extension of the joke that nobody could tell the two Duobots apart—not even the Necrobot!

===Soundtrack===
For all of "Dissolution":
*"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEI75kn9FTc Neither Here Nor There]" by {{w|Lost in the Trees}}

For this issue alone:
*"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XYigyIuY8to It Ended on an Oily Stage]" by {{w|British Sea Power}}
*"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTS5jXKLGkQ Optimo]" by {{w|Liquid Liquid}}
*"[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2G21swi--fc Lille]" by {{w|Lisa Hannigan}}

===Covers (4)===
*'''Regular cover:''' Cyclonus defends Swerve, Tailgate, and [[Whirl (G1)|Whirl]], by [[Jack Lawrence]] and [[Joana Lafuente]]
*'''Subscription cover A:''' Our heroes at the wrong ends of an array of blasters, by [[Alex Milne]];  one of a series of black-and-white "Artist's Edition" covers on IDW's January titles.
*'''Subscription cover B:''' Megatron reaches for Cybertron, by [[Nick Roche]] and [[Josh Burcham]]
*'''Retailer incentive cover:''' Rodimus stares out at an alien world, by [[Joana Lafuente]]; one of a series of retailer incentive variants by Lafuente on January's ''Transformers'' titles.

<gallery>
File:LL2 regcvr.jpg|
File:LL2 subcvrA.jpg|
File:LL2 subcvrB.jpg|
File:LL2 cvrRI.jpg|
</gallery>

===Advertisements===
*''Lost Light'' #3
*"The Hasbro Tribune" editorial page promoting January's [[Hasbro Universe]] titles, including this issue, [[New Cybertron Part 3: Behind My Bleeding Back|''Optimus Prime'' #3]], [[Desperate Measures|''Till All Are One'' #7]], [[Enter The Shadow|''Revolutionaries'' #2]], and [[G.I. Joe vol. 5 issue 2|''G.I. Joe'' #2]].
*2017 IDW Annuals
*''[[Action Man]]'' trade paperback
*''[[Revolution]]'' trade paperback
*IDW on Comixology Unlimited

==External links==
*[http://www.cbr.com/transformers-lost-light-2-exclusive-preview/ Preview]

[[Category: Lost Light issues]]