IDW Transformers: Lost Light issue 25 was released past November 7th, and it brought the gran finale of this fan-favorite Transformers comic title. It’s been a long ride that started in 2012 with “More Then Meets The eye” title, and later became “Lost Light” in 2016, but all good things have to end sometime.
IDW writer and Transformers fan James Roberts was one of the keystones of this saga, and care of Escapist Magazine website we have access to a very interesting article where James Roberts shares his impressions and creative ideas on how easy and difficult was for him to write a proper ending for “Lost Light”.
We are sure any comic fan would find this article a really worth reading. Not much to say, so you can enjoy by yourself the article here. After that, you can share with us your impression on the 2005 Boards!
Grimlock528
Enjoyable read.
What Roberts gave this fan is something I will always cherish.
Well done.
Swerve
Heh, see, I felt the same way for a little while into RID Season Two- but about half way through, long before 'Optimus Prime', just before Combiner Wars really kicked off (G.B. Blackrock had shown up and there was beginning to be nosing around the Enigma of Combination, but hadn't been 'revealed' as Sovereign at that point- I just decided to go with "the main book is the book I'm actually interested in", and abandoned RID, just keeping MTMTE on.
Dark Starscream
100% agree.
LoneReaper115
This universe has probably my favorite version of Megatron. His genuine realization at just how far gone from the initial intent his cause had gotten, and then actually being given a chance to prove that he wasn't beyond redemption was very refrshing to see. We're so used to the "Megatron and the Decepticons are evil because they just are the worst" without having the actual motivation and intent fleshed out, unlike this continuity.
highlander3000
This continuity as a whole made characters so gray that it was hard to root for anyone. Even Optimus Prime. I was actually rooting for Unicron to end this universe. I hope the next continuity treats the characters better. I want a Prime that is inspiring not depressing.
Necromaster
Nah, Pyra Magna had a toy that Hasbro needed to sell. Anode has no such luck.
Regarding this essay, it's frustrating because on one hand, this is actually good advice, but on the other… LL's ending was a mess.
justiceg
I read Roberts’ comment to be a lamentation related to how things concluded – I can’t imagine, for example that he was thrilled about the conclusion to the firstborn, for instance.
YoungPrime
IDK…Anode isn't the Fembot running around punching UltraMagnus in face, or bitching about Rodimus's every command or catching punches thrown by combiners or dicing up other actually lovable characters with fire sticks.
Maybe the Peppermint Patty vibe is annoying but she barely got any panel time or killed any Transformers off that I actually did like to boost "Mary Sue-ness" like 90% of the fembot cast that Barber wrote about.
Hell, I still haven't read a single Unicron book which is sad because you'd think a Unicron mini would feel epic and highly anticipated.
Hyoumaru
That too, and Slide.
YoungPrime
Fixed.
Mattymo
MTMTE/LL was a character driven series and it excelled at that. The characterization will be remembered more than the plot. Not necessarily a good or bad thing but sometimes that’s what matters. IDW has given us a lot of wonderful characters that have bled into other media which shows how deep they ran. Roberts did really there.
ProtectronPrime
(Emphasis Added). Okay, Mr. Roberts. We're on the same page. So what in the sam hill happened when plotlines got gunned down against the wall like St. Valentines Day Massacre victims and you decided to give us the "infinity fanfics" ending?
Hawksford
MTMTE and Lost Light weren’t perfect but were really good when he was on form, and they were unlike any other TF comic. I will miss it
Danny-Boy
She was necessary as a Blacksmith for the Grand Architect plot.
I mean, yeah, that plot kinda fell on its face, but it was there.
Hyoumaru
I don\'t think I\'ll ever hear a satisfactory reason for Anode existing.
dj_convoy II
James is a thoughtful author. I enjoyed this.
Hadlen_Weltall
Writing an ending is easy when you know where you want it to go, but it is made difficult when the path to getting there is under someone else\'s control. Thanks for the ride James.
Mattymo
Mmmm no? I can’t teally criticize John for his comic looking like a Legends comic where the dialogue boxes overpower the art like MTMTE/LL did because Roberts would rather tell than show.
Can’t really criticize John for introducing a character and exiting them in the same issue like the final arc of lost light did continuously. When John kills a character is had actual weight to it. Nightbeat? Ten?froid? Adaptus? solumus/Tyrest? Died and moved on. That’s it. Tie this up and move on so we can introduce something else and conclude that because he couldn’t self edit his story
Bass X0
It was still fun and enjoyable with likeable characters. I really didn’t care for the plight of the characters in Unicron and Optimus Prime. Whatever criticisms you have about Roberts, Barber is also guilty of the same criticisms, only more so. Roberts kept me reading because I wanted to. Barber kept me reading because I had to, being the main book. Having a dull lifeless story is worse than having a goofy dumb story.
Mattymo
Workable in the sense that no ones death mattered at all in the final arc and we were introduced to adaptaus as the big villain of the entire series and then died 10 pages later so we can be introduced to the the next big threat of the omega guardians and then they were wrapped up in the next page?
The real art of writing comics is being prepared for the conclusion if it happens abruptly. Roberts literally wouldn’t let anything go when he absolutely could have. He hurt his own book. Given 13 issues(months notice) is more than most give when theyre told their book is ending.