Editing Twenty Plus One

{{Comicstory
|series=mtmte|issueno=31
|prev=World, Shut Your Mouth Part 3: Predestination: A Beginner's Guide
|next=Slaughterhouse
|image=MTMTE31 subcvr.jpg
|title="Twenty Plus One"
|caption=
|publisher=[[IDW Publishing]]
|date=[[July 9]], [[2014]]
|coverdate=July 2014
|written by=[[James Roberts]]
|art by=[[Atilio Rojo]]
|colors by=[[Joana Lafuente]]
|letters by=[[Tom B. Long]]
|assistant editor=[[Vincent Kings]]
|editor=[[John Barber]]
|continuity=[[IDW Generation 1 continuity|IDW continuity]]
|chronology=[[IDW timeline|Current era (2014)]]
}}

'''Tensions run high as twenty ''Lost Light''ers find themselves stuffed into one small spaceship, and things only get worse when the lights start going out, and 'bots start disappearing... '''

==Synopsis==
Following the disappearance of the ''[[Lost Light]]'' and the evacuation of the crew, twenty 'bots cram themselves into the [[Rodpod]]: [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]], [[Crosscut (Autobot)|Crosscut]], [[Skids (G1)|Skids]], [[Gears (G1)|Gears]], [[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]], [[Getaway]], [[Nautica]], [[Ammo]], [[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]], [[Chromedome (G1)|Chromedome]], [[Swerve (G1)|Swerve]], [[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]], [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]], [[Riptide (G1)|Riptide]], [[Tailgate (G1)|Tailgate]], [[Dipstick]], [[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]], [[Hound (G1)|Hound]], [[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]], and [[Highbrow (G1)|Highbrow]]. When Nautica inquires as to the origins of the now-vanished ship, Riptide recounts how he, [[Pipes (G1)|Pipes]] and [[Drift (G1)|Drift]] purchased the vessel from a pair of [[Cybertronian language#Chirolinguistics|chirolingual]] [[NAIL]]s in [[Iacon (polity)|Iacon]]'s religious quarter, naming it after the [[Festival of Lost Light]], which was taking place there at the time. Though Megatron tries to make the group focus on their present predicament, Nautica persists with her train of thought, and highlights the abnormality of the ship and the power of its [[quantum generator]]s. At Ammo's request, she tries to explain to the befuddled crew how quantum engines are essentially powered by the improbability of their own function, concluding with the theory that the ship was ''so'' advanced that it "proved itself impossible." Megatron is less concerned with the ''how'' of the ship's disappearance, but rather with what to do next; at that moment, [[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] receives a transmission from [[Hot Rod (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rodimus]] on a neighboring shuttle, informing them that they will be making for the nearby lectureworld of [[Ofsted XVII]] in [[Sector 113]].

After a crew headcount, [[Crosscut (Autobot)|Crosscut]] is telling [[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]] about his latest play when the lights suddenly go out. When power returns a second later, Crosscut has vanished mid-sentence, and [[Tailgate (G1)|Tailgate]], full of false bravado after all the praise he has received lately, draws a gun on Megatron, blaming him for Crosscut's apparent death. Cyclonus and Ratchet try to talk the tiny 'bot down, but Megatron's reaction goes from bemusement to anger when Tailgate proposes locking him up, and he draws a weapon of his own. This prompts Riptide to add his weapon to the growing standoff, and when Cyclonus tries to calm everyone down, Huffer and Gears, never having trusted the ancient Cybertronian, both draw on him. Hound then appears to level his own weapon at Nautica, but it quickly becomes apparent that he is actually aiming at the lurking [[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]], who pounces from the shadows just as the lights go out once more. Megatron fires into the darkness and subdues the feline; as the lights flick back on, he claims not to know why Ravage is there, but whether that is true or not is called into question as he secretly communicates chirolinguistically with the cat-bot, telling him to play dead. 

The discovery of Ravage defuses the standoff, but Nautica soon observes that more disappearances have taken place in the darkness: Gears, Blaster, Huffer, Chromedome, Hound and Highbrow have now also vanished. Nightbeat dedicates himself to determining the pattern by which 'bots are being taken, and, reminded of [[Tyrest (G1)|Tyrest]] and his plan by Cyclonus, decides to begin by figuring out which of those present are [[Reproduction|constructed cold]], like himself, and which are [[Reproduction|forged]]. Megatron refuses to divulge that information, but a pattern ''seems'' to be emerging as Getaway, Dipstick and Ammo reveal that they are "Made To Order soldiers"—second-generation constructed cold, created during wartime from the [[spark]] stockpile—until Ratchet points out that he and several others present are forged, and several of the disappeared were constructed cold. As Nightbeat withdraws into detective mode, the others begin talking amongst themselves; after Ammo, Riptide and Getaway tell Nautica about the "Ten-Step Program" that MTOs had to pass in order to be declared "world-ready" (which Riptide ''hated''), Ratchet chimes in about the high percentage of MTOs who claim to have had mystical experiences, which he professes are neurological hallucinations that are a product of their virtually-newborn senses. Swerve takes offense, pointing out that faith isn't a new idea, but Skids counters that with a brief lecture on a condition known to affect robotic lifeforms known as "[[information creep]]"—the corruption of brain data that results in memories being unconsciously reinterpreted. Nautica is familiar with the condition, which was known on [[Caminus]] as "blurred data"; just as she is thinking of her friends [[Windblade (G1)|Windblade]] and [[Chromia (G1)|Chromia]], the lights go out once more.

This time, Ammo, Hoist, Dipstick, and Cyclonus have disappeared, but Cyclonus's [[Great Sword]] has not vanished with him. As Nightbeat inspects it, he gets the feeling he is being watched, and turns to sees a gigantic eye staring down at him... though it quickly turns out that it belongs to [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ultra Magnus]]'s [[holomatter]] avatar, projected in from the ''[[Leading Light]]'', albeit at accidentally gigantic scale. Magnus quickly adjusts its size, and informs the remaining crew that all the other occupants of ''his'' craft have disappeared too, as have other shuttles. Tailgate peers out a porthole and notes that he can't see Magnus's shuttle anywhere; Magnus has but a moment to realise that he can't feel his body any more before his avatar fades out. 
At the end of his rope, Nightbeat instructs Ratchet to write down every piece of information he knows about the crew from their medical files, but he barely has time to study the data before another blackout claims Swerve, Tailgate, and Ratchet... but ''not'' Ratchet's hands, which Skids points out used to belong to [[Pharma (G1)|Pharma]]. Riptide grins, having heard the whole story behind that from Swerve, and remarks that the ''Lost Lighters'' sure did get up to some crazy stuff while they were away. Nightbeat asks him to expand, having believed that Riptide had been on the ''Lost Light'' from the outset, but the [[Hydrobot]] explains that he was not: after going back to get a receipt for the ship from the NAILs who sold it to them, he eavesdropped on them and learned they were [[Mortilus]] worshippers who had been keeping a [[sparkeater (creature)|Sparkeater]] in the basement, feeding it with [[turbofox]]es they had stolen from the crew of the ''[[Alchemy-Seven]]'', and when an altercation ensued, he was knocked out, and missed the ''Lost Light'' launch. Nightbeat crows that he has solved the mystery: everyone who disappeared was a member of the original ''Lost Light'' crew, and all those remaining on the Rodpod (himself, Megatron, Skids, Nautica, Getaway and Riptide) joined the crew after its launch. As Megatron angrily points out, though, his deduction solves absolutely nothing, since the detective was too slow to save anyone. Just then, Nautica informs them that they have reached Ofsted XVII, but that they are not the first to arrive... as outside, floating in the planet's orbit, is the shattered wreckage of the destroyed ''Lost Light''!

==Featured characters==
(Characters in ''italic text'' appear only in flashbacks.)<br>
{{featuredcharacters
|c1=
{{{!}}border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="background:transparent"
{{!}}-
{{!}}style="background:transparent; border-right: 0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*''[[Drift (G1)|Drift]]'' (1)
*[[Chromedome (G1)|Chromedome]] (2)
*''[[Rewind (G1)|Rewind]]'' (3)
*[[Riptide (G1)|Riptide]] (4)
*''[[Pipes (G1)|Pipes]]'' (5)
*[[Blaster (G1)|Blaster]] (7)
*[[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]] (8)
*[[Nautica]] (9)
{{!}}style="background:transparent; border-right: 0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Ammo]] (10)
*[[Skids (G1)|Skids]] (11)
*[[Swerve (G1)|Swerve]] (12)
*[[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]] (13)
*[[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]] (14)
*[[Tailgate (G1)|Tailgate]] (15)
*[[Getaway]] (16)
*[[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] (17)
{{!}}style="background:transparent; border-right: 0px" valign="top"{{!}}
*[[Crosscut (Autobot)|Crosscut]] (18)
*[[Gears (G1)|Gears]] (19)
*[[Huffer (G1)|Huffer]] (20)
*[[Dipstick]] (21)
*[[Hound (G1)|Hound]] (23)
*[[Highbrow (G1)|Highbrow]] (24)
*[[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ultra Magnus]] (26)
{{!}}}
|c2=
*[[Ravage (G1)|Ravage]] (25)
|c4=
*''[[Lost Light's former owners|Former owners of the Lost Light]]'' (6)
*[[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]] (22)
}}

==Quotes==
"I didn't realize how hard it was to explain the science until Tailgate asked me how 'quanton technology' worked. I don't think you learned anything that afternoon, did you?"<br>
"Just some new swear words..."
:—'''Ratchet''' and '''Tailgate'''


"If I sit next to you too long, am I going to die of '''smartass poisoning'''?"
:—'''Getaway''' on Nightbeat


"'I hope this puts paid to the notion that I ignore everything my "co-captain" says on the grounds that he's lazy, petulant and pathologically ill-suited to command...'"
:—'''Megatron''' on Rodimus


"Cool it, guys! Cyclonus isn't the enemy!"<br>
"He's not? Oh I'm '''sorry.''' It must've been the '''other''' Cyclonus who murdered all those Autobots at Kimia—because if not, that makes you a <big>'''MONUMENTAL FRIKKIN' HYPOCRITE!'''"</big>
:—'''Tailgate''' and '''Huffer'''


"No one has a right to know how a fellow Cybertronian was created. There's a thin line between categorization and segregation, and I never want to see it crossed again."
:—'''Megatron'''


"In the end, High Command decided they wanted their new troops to fight, not study, so they reduced the steps from ten to eight to three. '''Three steps''', Nautica: 'From '''thaw to war''' in under an hour.' Because who cares whether or not a '''warborn knockoff''' with a three-minute life expectancy can quote '''[[Dominus Ambus]]''' or notate the '''Grand Celestial Melody'''? So long as he can assemble a path-blaster with his brand-new eyes closed, everyone's happy. That's '''sarcasm,''' by the way. I dabble."
:—'''Skids'''


"Mystery solved!"<br>
"Well done."<br>
"Thank you. Want to say it again and mean it?"<br>
"You failed."<br>
"What?"<br>
"You '''failed'''. You solved the mystery, but only after everyone was taken. You were too slow to save them"<br>
"Yes, but - at least I worked out what was happening. That has to count for something, doesn't it? ....doesn't it?"
:—'''Nightbeat''' and '''Megatron'''

==Notes==
===Continuity notes===
*"Don't make me put my foot down," Drift says to Pipes, wickedly recalling (and, since this is a flashback, technically foreshadowing) Pipes's death at the hands—or rather, foot—of [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]] in [[Under Cold Blue Stars|issue #15]].
*A new face in the crowd, Ammo, was previously mentioned in [[Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|issue #19]]. And he doesn't even die or anything!
*Crosscut refers to an earlier play of his named ''My Shovel, Your Face''; [[The Dead Are Not Enough: Dark Cybertron Chapter 7|''Robots in Disguise'' #25]] taught us that Crosscut was known for liberating [[Petrex]] "with wise words and a shovel".
*In what is likely no coincidence, there was a brief blackout on the ''Lost Light'' back in [[World, Shut Your Mouth Part 1: Towards Peace|issue #28]], just as the disappearances were starting. Perhaps it was during this blackout that the [[Pyrobot]]s vanished.
*The pistol Megatron draws is one of the revolvers seen holstered inside his hip armor during the aforementioned previous blackout.
*The crew discover Ravage's presence, but the audience learned he was on the ship in issue #28.
*Getaway referred to himself as an "M.T.O." last issue; here we learn this stands for "Made To Order soldier", and refers to a 'bot constructed cold after the outbreak of the war, from the stockpile of sparks leftover from [[Tyrest (G1)|Tyrest]]'s bleeding of the [[Matrix of Leadership|Matrix]].
*Hoist mentions having a friend named [[Scattergun]]. Assuming it's not a different 'bot with the same name (they do say all the good ones are taken), we previously heard of this fellow in [[The Gloaming|issue #16]], as one of Chromedome's former Conjunx Endurae. Scattergun was constructed cold for the Fourth [[Vorsk Offensive]], a battle first mentioned in "[[Chaos Theory Part 2]]".
*Riptide was constructed cold to take part in the conflict on [[Simanzi]], which has been mentioned several times throughout Roberts's work. He notes he was specifically created a [[Hydrobot]] in response to something called the "[[Forced Flood]]".
*Ammo was constructed cold in response to Megatron's attack on [[K'th Kinsere]], a region of Cybertron that is home to [[Vaulted Heights of K'th Kinsere|Vaulted Heights]] (mentioned in [[Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|issue #1]]) and a sect of [[High Priests of K'th Kinsere|High Priests]] (namechecked in ''[[Omega's Conundrum|Spotlight: Orion Pax]]'').
*Ratchet refers to the [[Shimmer]], a battlefield hallucination that plays a role in the prose story "[[Bullets]]", as well as the [[Necrobot]], who made an alleged appearance back in [[Scavengers (Part 2): Who's Afraid of the DJD?|issue #8]].
*Ultra Magnus's [[Verity Carlo]] [[holomatter]] avatar from [[Cybertronian Homesick Blues|issue #13]] reappears. Megatron recognizes the image of the girl, having encountered her ''waaaay'' back in [[Infiltration issue 5|''Infitration'' #5]] (though he seemed deeply uninterested at the time). The panel of a giant Verity looming over Megatron is based on the dramatic reveal of that encounter, with the roles reversed.
*Hoist is noted to suffer from "feelings of isolation", which we learned about him in his [[The Waiting Game|self-titled ''Spotlight'']].
*Highbrow is revealed to have been a former member of the [[Malware Brigade]], an anti-[[Senate]] organization mentioned in "Chaos Theory Part 2".
*The former owners of the ''Lost Light'' are worshippers of [[Mortilus]], the death god of the [[Guiding Hand]], introduced in the [[Primus: You, Me, and Other Revelations|2012 ''More than Meets the Eye'' annual]]. They are hiding from the crew of the ''[[Alchemy-Seven]]'', a NAIL ship first mentioned in ''[[Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime]]''.
*The sparkeater in the basement of the ''Lost Light'', and the fact that the ship's former owners had been feeding it turbofoxes, were introduced in [[Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|issue #3]].
*Of course, there have been other new additions to the ''Lost Light'' since its launch beyond the 'bots left at the end of this issue ([[First Aid (G1)|First Aid]], for example, or any of the new 'bots who have joined up since "Dark Cybertron"); when their shuttles disappeared in the course of this issue's events it is currently unknown whether they went with them or were left floating in space. The reason the Rodpod does not disappear, on the other hand, is because it's a ''new'' Rodpod, built last issue, following the original's destruction in ''Robots in Disguise'' #25.

===Transformers references===
*Sector 113 is, of course, another of Roberts's reference to [[113 (disambiguation)|the number]].
*Skids makes reference to the [[pathblaster]], a weapon wielded by [[Roadbuster (G1)|Roadbuster]] in the original Marvel UK storyline, "[[Time Wars]]". His rant about the lowering standards of the MTO education system may have even been a direct reference to Roadbuster who, according to "[[Zero Point]]", went millions of years before even learning how to read.
*Ammo has [[Corrodia Gravis]], a rusting disease introduced in the Marvel UK story "[[Assassins]]".
*Hound is the one who catches Ravage, because [[The Transformers (issue)|of]] [[Crisis of Command!|course]] [[More than Meets the Eye, Part 3|he]] [[The Hunt for Soundwave|is]].

===Real-life references===
*In televisual terms, this issue would be a {{w|Bottle episode}}: a story that primarily consists of dialogue, and takes place in one setting. Bottle episodes were originally conceived as a money-saving venture, but the potential for tension and character-driven interactions they inherently possess has given them more value as storytelling devices; obviously, ''More than Meets the Eye'' doesn't save money by doing an issue this way!
*The specific meaning of the Festival of Lost Light is not divulged here, but given its name, the fact that it involves the release of lanterns, and a song known as the "Hymn of the Disappeared", it seems to be a ceremony dedicated to remembering lost loved ones. In particular, it is evocative of Japan's {{w|Tōrō nagashi}} ceremony, in which lanterns are released to light the way to the afterlife for the souls of the dead.
*Ofsted XVII is named after {{w|Ofsted}}, the British government department which oversees schools. It is labelled an "A Level" planet, in reference to the English academic qualification, the {{w|A-level}}.
*What Highbrow and Cyclonus have to say about the education system is also a reference to developments in the English school (Academies) and university (tuition fee) systems.
*Chromedome remarks that Ethics are Ofsted's "Specialist Subject", a term that, while generic-sounding, is almost certainly a reference to the British TV quiz show ''{{w|Mastermind (TV series)|Mastermind}}''.
*"Information creep" is a term used by Wikipedia to describe the slow feed of information into an article that winds up shifting its perspective and/or readability over time.
*Dipstick was constructed cold to take part in "Operation: Doom Patrol", a reference to the DC Comics superhero team, the {{w|Doom Patrol}}.
*Among the assorted types of Spark the crew are shown to have, only Nautica has an "estriol-positive" one. {{w|Estriol}} is one of the three main estrogens produced by the human body, indicating that being a [[female Transformer]] is not just about the shape of your chassis, but goes all the way to the Spark. Belatedly realizing the potentially offensive connotations of defining female Transformers in this way (casting them as an "abnormal", and reinforcing a binary gender system), Roberts requested that this be removed in the trade paperback collection.

===Errors===
*The [[scale]] of many bots is off this issue - Tailgate is shown to come up to Ratchet's shoulder, for instance.
*On page 11, Megatron channels his inner Grimlock, saying of Ravage "He unconscious" rather than "He's unconscious".
*On page 12, as Megatron communicates with Ravage chirolinguistically, the cassette's name is misspelled "Ravege". This miiiight be supposed to indicate that Megatron's mastery of the dialect isn't perfect, though.
*On page 15, the word "discovered" is split over two lines in Getaway's speech bubble but there's no connecting hyphen, nor is it split where a hyphen would be allowed to divide the word in the first place.
*On page 16, when Nightbeat is attempting to find out Megatron's method of construction "It seems" is written as "I seems".

===Crew manifest===
*It is revealed that Riptide was ''supposed'' to be on the ship when it departed originally, but was waylaid.
*If Nightbeat's deductions are correct, the disappearance of the Pyrobots in [[World, Shut Your Mouth Part 1: Towards Peace|#28]] means they were part of the original crew.
**Confirmed previous crew: Ammo, Huffer, Gears
***At least 33/79 original crew still on board, 2 departed
**Confirmed new arrivals: none this issue
***At least 17 new crew members since second launch

===Soundtrack===
*''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnlLhq1kW10 Lost Property]'' by {{w|The Divine Comedy (band)|The Divine Comedy}}
*''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CD7WJPOrLU S (Studio Version)]'' by {{w|Labradford}}

===Other trivia===
*When Nautica explains how the [[quantum generator]]s work using ''improbablility'', you'd be forgiven for thinking it's a deliberate nod to the {{w|Technology in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy#Infinite Improbability Drive|Infinite Improbability Drive}} from {{w|Douglas Adams}}' ''{{w|The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy}}''. In actuality, [https://twitter.com/jroberts332/status/487688742539632640 James Roberts has never read the series], and came up with the idea entirely independently.
*Four "Meet the Crew"-style cast lists are sprinkled throughout the issue as a means of cataloguing who disappears, with each vanished crewmember being greyed out. Each lists also provide for the audience an assortment of information about the characters as Nightbeat requests it in-story. These pages do not count towards the 22-page total of the story itself, so there are noticeably fewer ad pages in the back of the comic.
*A quick forged/constructed cold checklist from this issue:
**Forged: Crosscut, Skids, Nautica, Huffer, Swerve, Hoist, Tailgate, Cyclonus, Hound, Ratchet
**Constructed cold (first wave): Gears, Blaster, Chromedome, Nightbeat
**Constructed cold (second wave): Getaway, Ammo, Riptide, Dipstick
*While he actively protests revealing his origin, Megatron's status as a [[Point One Percenter]] confirms him as being forged.
*Highbrow is listed as constructed cold but his wave is not given, presumably because Ratchet doesn't know it. (Although Highbrow is listed as a member of the pre-war [[Malware Brigade]], the group hypothetically ''could'' have still been active post-war.)
*We likewise learn the names of a number of Sparktypes; there are at least seven, presumably eight:
**Vitrious-Positive: Chromedome, Riptide (a type shared by Rewind and Whirl, as we learned back in [[Before & After|issue #12]].)
**Vitrious-Negative: Crosscut, Skids, Ammo
**Isomeric-Postive: Blaster, Getaway, Nightbeat 
**Isomeric-Negative: Gears, Hoist, Dipstick, Ratchet, Highbrow
**Ferrum-Positive: Huffer, Hound, Swerve
**Ferrum-Negative: Cyclonus, Tailgate
**Estriol-Positive: Nautica
*Other intriguing character points revealed on these cast pages include: Crosscut has a phobia of [[Nanocon]]s; Getaway has shown purported signs of affinity for the Matrix; Nautica is a possible [[Outlier]]; Ammo is a [[Militant Monoform Movement|monoformer]]; Swerve is a practising [[Adaptus]]ian and has been diagnosed with {{w|Logorrhea (psychology)|Logorrhea}}; Riptide has an unreliable [[transformation cog]]; Dipstick's alt mode is "redundant"; and Hound was formerly part of the [[Primal Vanguard]].
*The "Thaw to War" tagline is another one of those verbal gags that only works if you imagine it spoken with Roberts's British accent; then, the words rhyme.

===Covers (3)===
*'''Regular cover:''' Megatron, Ratchet, Nautica and Chromedome in a standoff, by [[Alex Milne]] and [[Josh Perez]]
*'''Subscription cover:''' Mosaic tiles of the twenty characters in this issue, by [[Nick Roche]] and [[Josh Burcham]]
*'''30th Anniversary cover:''' Nightbeat by [[Phil Jimenez]] and [[Romulo Fajardo Jr.]] The image is the packaging art for Nightbeat's upcoming ''[[Transformers: Generations|Generations]]'' toy, like the Jiminez and Fajardo covers for "[[Dark Cybertron]]", but this particular piece was based on an early concept for Nightbeat's toy, and has him as a [[retool]] of ''Generations'' [[Jazz (G1)/toys|Jazz]], when the actual toy is a retool of ''Generations'' [[Bumblebee (G1)/toys|Bumblebee]].
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