Transformers Lost Light #16 Review

Written by: James Roberts

Art by: Jack Lawrence

Colors by: Joana Lafuente

Published by: IDW

What if the Transformers also had an afterlife, called oh so brilliantly the Afterspark? Well, that is exactly what this issue of Transformers Lost Light seeks to answer after a harrowing ending to Rodimus’ group a few issues back.

You see, after a fight escalates on the enlarged Skip “ship” coupled with a slowly disappearing Ratchet, tensions boiled over and then calm returned in the form of Ten, from what I gather, a formerly mute Transformer, explaining exactly what needs to be done to save all their lives.

Well, it seems that what was done, trying to help Ratchet by entering compressed space, didn’t exactly go as planned and everyone aboard the ship now finds themselves in an unknown landscape meeting with some dead friends. So maybe this truly is the Afterspark afterall?

What makes this issue so charming though is Roberts’s use of the varying characters within the issue tackling their situation in different forms. Some do it with incredulity, some do it with humour, others try and find their long dead friends/lovers, and this is all done with some of the sharpest dialogue I’ve read in a comic in a while. It’s quick, witty, sad, and plain awesome, all at the same time.

The art though, from Lawrence and especially colors by Lafuente, really bring the whole package together. Even though these are drawings of robots, Lawrence brings an almost elite level of expression to their faces that you only ever see greats like Kevin Maguire achieve on the page.

This is just another fantastic issue that continues to impress me and I really can’t wait to see what comes next.