REVIEW: ‘Transformers: Lost Light,’ Vol. 4

The Transformers: Lost Light Vol. 4 is a collection of issues #19-25. Published by IDW Publishing, this volume is written by James Roberts, illustrated by E.J. Su (#19), Casey W. Coller (#20), Jack Lawrence (#21, 23, 25), Brendan Cahill (#22 & 24), with coloring by Joana Lafuente, lettering by Tom B. Long, and series edits by David Mariotte.

In this final volume, Rodimus and the crew of the Lost Light find their adventures coming to an end in an action-packed conclusion that’s both heart-wrenching and heart-warming. The volume starts out like something out of a horror film. The crew of the lost light has dealt with a sparkeater, a mutated Cybertronian that consumes living sparks, before but now the crew must contend with an army of sparkeaters. To make matters worse, these newly-turned sparkeaters are Autobots. While the crew hastily attempt to procure a cure for their friends, they find that the ‘bot behind all their recent misfortunes isn’t the one pulling the strings. In fact, the crew of the Lost Light is part of a much bigger picture, one that could have universe-wide implications.

Lost Light is a sequel to The Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye series. The ensemble chosen for these comics is one of the best parts about this series, in my opinion. The chosen group of Autobots and Decepticons are characters that have been largely overlooked in past literature. Given this, it’s been entertaining to see these characters gain more depth to their personalities and backstories.

It’s also been warming to see characters who were once on different sides of a 4-million year-long war come together to not only work through various problems but even grow to love one another. The Transformers: Lost Light Vol. 4 really re-iterates how far this rag-tag crew has come and how much they’ve all grown.

The art and color itself are very appealing and probably some of the best I’ve seen from a Transformers comic. Given that Transformers can be quite boxy and flat-looking, the artists make these characters look anything but.  The characters are drawn very emotively which certainly lends to their likeability. The lettering is very easy to follow and leads to smooth transitions between speech bubbles. Something that is done very well in this volume, and the rest of the series, is how they deal with references.

Whenever a character makes a reference there is usually a yellow box at the bottom of the panel to explain which past issue they’re referring to. I’ve seen this done in other comics, but this series has so many references and jokes based on these references, that these yellow boxes are a great help.

The dialogue is absolutely brilliant. The personalities of the characters come through the dialogue well and are very consistent. These ‘bots are sarcastic and witty; someone’s always got a joke up their sleeve. Not to mention, robot-dad jokes galore. There’re a few corny spots of dialogue here and there, but they work for the situation. Overall, the dialogue is just plain fun. And, even when the dialogue gets serious, the combination of the art and dialogue make for some very emotional moments.

The only problem I had was that the plot itself is a bit convoluted. Given that the comic makes time-traveling and crossing between dimensions seem like an every-day occurrence, things are bound to get convoluted. So, if you haven’t read all the previous issues or they aren’t fresh in your mind (which is what happened to me), you may get a little lost. Hence why those little yellow boxes are wonderful.

Given that this is the final volume in this series, I think that the ending wraps up the story, and the characters, wonderfully. I am sad to see this series end but it was a fun ride while it lasted.

The Transformers: Lost Light Vol. 4 is available now wherever comic books are sold.