The Dying of the Light Part 4: At Close of Day

« The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye #53 »
Men of Harlech, stop your dreaming Can't you see their spear points gleaming
"The Dying of the Light Part 4: At Close of Day"
Publisher	IDW Publishing
First published	May 25, 2016
Cover date	May 2016
Written by	James Roberts
Pencils by	Alex Milne (pg 1-13, 19-20) and Hayato Sakamoto (pg 14-18)
Colors by	Joana Lafuente
Letters by	Tom B. Long
Editor	John Barber
Continuity	2005 IDW continuity
Chronology	Current era (2016)

In the final hours before the sun sets, Rewind and Chromedome finally solve the mystery of Dominus Ambus.

Synopsis

Hey yo, I'm just like my country
I'm young, scrappy and hungry
And I am not throwing away my shot!

In the Necrobot's fortress, Ratchet finishes up repairs on Megatron while simultaneously perusing Velocity's case notes from recent events in order to get caught up on what has happened while he's been away. He expresses some concern for Tailgate, observing that other crewmembers exposed to the energy released by his spark upon its mutation have experienced sudden system crashes, but the group can't worry too much about that right now, as the little 'bot is hard at work demolishing part of the fortress to provide Brainstorm with raw materials to make weapons. Although the team is making ready to fight, they also must prepare for the worst, and so Rewind records some last words from each of them, to be sent out in the event of their deaths.

Despite the danger, Nightbeat's mind is preoccupied with the mystery of the hollow planet on which they now stand, and he convinces Minimus Ambus to allow him to spend the remaining daylight hours investigating it. He ropes Rung into helping him, but just before they depart, they are called into a room by Nautica, along with Brainstorm, Velocity, and Skids. Casting hesitations aside in the face of impending death, Nautica recites the formal oath that bonds each of them to her as Amica Endura. Afterward, however, as Rung leaves with Nightbeat, his parting with Skids seems noticeably awkward.

Chromedome volunteers to perform mnemosurgery on the captive Pet in order to obtain the location of the DJD's spaceship for Rodimus. As he injects the little creature, however, the experience proves stranger than expected, and he soon comes to a horrifying realization: the Pet is not a turbofox at all, but a Transformer...

Simultaneously, Rewind watches as Brainstorm measures Minimus Ambus for a new armor, which leads Minimus to mention that the ability to carry a heavier load was the one thing he was better at than his brother and fellow Loadbearer Dominus Ambus. Rewind is shocked to learn that his former Conjunx Endura kept the secret that he was a Loadbearer from him, and immediately opens the Grand Cybertronian Taxonomy on the Necrobot's computer so that Minimus can find Dominus's true appearance in it. Minimus does so with ease, pulling up his brother's base alternate mode: a turbofox.

There are moments that the words don't reach...

Understanding strikes Rewind and Chromedome at the same time, and the little archivist runs straight to the medibay (pausing only to sock Rodimus on the jaw for letting Chromedome inject yet again), where Chromedome pulls the full truth from The Pet's memories. Dominus disappeared because he was the Autobot undercover operative Agent 113, but when his true identity was discovered by the D.J.D., they "domesticated" him as a form of torture, locking him in beast mode by removing his transformation cog and lobotomizing him, turning him into their Pet. Chromedome has begun to repair Dominus's mind, but the mnemosurgeon's spark starts to fade thanks to the rigors of the procedure. Rewind urges him to stop, but Chromedome explains that Dominus will die if he does, and that he is willing to give up his life so that Rewind and Dominus can be together. Rewind refuses to let him, grabbing Drift's sword and slicing Chromedome's needle-arm off, severing the connection, and saving his life at the cost of Dominus's.

Let's show these Federalists who they're up against
SOUTHERN MOTHERFRAGGING DEMOCRATIC REPUBLICANS

Hours later, the forces of the D.J.D. gather outside the fortress's storm-shield, while Whirl and Cyclonus work to finish assembling perimeter defenses. As Cyclonus puts the finishing touches to a turret, Whirl asks him about his relationship with Tailgate and whether or not they are "together." Cyclonus angrily informs him that they are not, because Tailgate deserves someone better than him, but vows that no harm will come to him this day. With the turret completed, Whirl fires upon the Decepticon mob, but unfortuntely discovers that in addition to preventing the Decepticons from firing in, the storm-shield prevents the turrets from firing outward. With only twenty minutes until sunset, Whirl and Cyclonus head back inside the fortress to share this report, leading Rodimus to contemplate simply shutting the shield down and facing death head-on. Megatron urges him to reconsider and for the group to cherish every minute of life they have left; from his tone, and the fact that he rebuffs the gift of a freshly-constructed fusion cannon, Rodimus realizes that Megatron does not intend to stand with them in the fight. Calling himself too weak and too afraid, Megatron slinks away, leaving even Ravage ashamed of his once-great leader. But where Megatron has let the team down, Brainstorm has not: he has constructed an absolutely colossal new suit of "Maximus Ambus" armor for Minimus that will give the D.J.D. as hard a fight as possible. Though Nightbeat and Rung have not yet returned, Rodimus welcomes the team into a group hug, thanks them all for travelling with him... then deactivates the storm-shield, so that they may all rush out and meet their destiny together.

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Quotes

"And Minimus is okay with this..."
"Yes, provided I don't go alone. I said I'd take someone he could do without. Joking."
"You're not, though, are you?"
"No."

—Rung and Nightbeat

"I bid you stand in the glow of my spark that you may feel the heat of my words and know them to be true. I invite you to receive my light and in doing so becoming Amica Endura—from now until forever. Rung, for your words. Brainstorm, for your intellect. Lotty, for your determination. Nightbeat, for your curiosity. And Skids, for your kindness. Your kindness and your dancing. As you are to me, may I be to you—today, tomorrow, and always."

—Nautica recites the Amica Endura oath

"If I pull out now, he'll die! His mind will collapse and he will die!"
"But if you stay in there, you'll die..."
"It doesn't matter! There's never been room for both of us in your life anyway!"
"But I can't..."
"Yes you can! YOU CAN HAVE HIM INSTEAD OF ME!"
(beat)
SLIKT
"It's not your decision to make, Domey. It's not your decision to make."

—Chromedome and Rewind creating the first cry-your-eyes-out moment of this issue

"No. We haven't spoken. Not about that. Important things are felt, not said."
"I'll take your word for it. I don't do "relationships." My world begins and ends with me. So why aren't you guys a couple?"
"......he deserves better. He's kind. He cares about people. The more he's pushed away, the more he reaches out."
"So it's not the height difference."
"It is, in a way. He towers over me."
"Well, I still think you should be spending the rest of your lives together. I mean we're talking all of 24 minutes, but..."
"Oh, we'll survive this. He'll survive, at any rate."
"Because of the upgrade?"
"Because I'll split this world open and tear down the sky before I let him come to even the slightest harm."

—Cyclonus and Whirl creating the second cry-your-eyes-out moment of this issue.

"C'mere, guys... Group hug. Thanks for travelling with me. Ready?"

—Rodimus creating the third... I'm not... I'm not crying, dammit!

Notes

Continuity notes

• Ratchet names Powerflash and Strafe as those affected by the energy released by Tailgate; they were part of the security team who confronted him and Cyclonus in issue #47. Ratchet compares the sudden burnout they have suffered to the effects of Ultra-Energon, which was known to cause those who used it to burn out after it ran out—this fate befell Thunderwing in Stormbringer and Megatron in Escalation. The footnote refers the reader all the way back to Infiltration, in which the substance was introduced.
• A one-panel cutaway shows Swerve having a breakdown. Rightly so, since we learned in issue #4 that he's seen the D.J.D. in action in the past, and should know better than just about anyone what the group's in for.
• The recording of the message seen in issue #50 takes place off-panel this issue. It was in that same issue that we learned the Necrobot's planet was hollow.
• Rewind snarls that Rodimus is an "enabler" for Chromedome's injecting habit. Chromedome declared he'd given it up for good back in #27 but six months later, Rodimus cajoled him to do it again just this once in #30, #36, and #48.
• At long last, the mystery revealed! Dominus Ambus was first introduced to audiences in issue #12, when Chromedome told Tailgate his story, and the unanswered question of what became of him has hung over the series ever since. With this issue, we learn that he was the mysterious "Agent 113", the Autobots' mole inside the D.J.D. originally introduced in the prose story "Bullets" in 2010. The revelation that he was a Loadbearer explains the different appearance he had when he was serving as the previous Vos, seen in issue #44. The designation "113" (which #44 told us was chosen by Prowl and which Ultra Magnus noted probably "meant something") is revealed to have been taken from the number applied to his turbofox alternate mode in the Grand Cybertronian Taxonomy.
• Further, a lot of Dominus's history now takes on increased meaning: as a tiny beast-former, with a form frowned on by Functionism, the idea that he was responsible for creating the Ambus Test to validate the sentience of such Cybertronians makes even more sense, as does his treatment of, and ultimately loving relationship with, a Disposable class 'bot like Rewind. This also adds an extra dimension to Dominus staying in his shell and never revealing his true inner form, as this would allow him to 'pass' for a 'higher' functioning Transformer.
• In an alternate timeline, Dominus Ambus was put in charge of categorizing "the animals" within the Grand Cybertronian Taxonomy.
• Dominus was subjected to "domestication" to turn him into the D.J.D.'s pet, lobotomizing him and removing his transformation cog. We've seen this horrifying process before, back in issue #46, in which it was revealed that Decepticon Demus was performing it on other Cybertronians to turn them into "torture-dolls" to sell to alien races. The "meet the cast" page all the way back in issue #8 even described the Pet as "domesticated"!!
• In fact, the Latin-rooted "Dominus Ambus" never seemed to make a heck of a lot of sense for the character, effectively meaning "Master Walks." But now, well, it seems like it might have been foreshadowing all along, 'cause... who's good boy? Walkies? You want master to take you walkies? Yes you do ess oo doo ess oo dooooo lets go walkies
• The reveal of just what the Pet really is puts Kaon's obvious emotional attachment to him in a much creepier light. It also makes Tarn's violent reaction last issue a bit more understandable; Kaon wasn't just blubbering about a lost pet, he was expressing love and concern for an enemy spy.

He lost that same arm again… but at least this time, he didn't lose Rewind. Yay, progress…?

• Chromedome mentions that Dominus "was Agent 113! The *original* Agent 113!", which implies both that Dominus had a successor and that Chromedome knows that the original has been replaced. This is probably alluding to a (fortunately) cut plot in which Chromedome and Prowl were complicit in the disappearance of Dominus Ambus.
• On the other hand, this could be a dialogue error and the line is meant to read "was Vos! The *original* Vos!", which would also make (more) sense in this context.
• After Rewind slices Chromedome's arm off, the shot of them lying on the floor together mirrors the final page of issue #15. Chromedome's even missing the same arm! On top of that, Drift's short sword was basically the reason Rewind # 1 had to sacrifice himself against Overlord back in that same issue. Here, Rewind # 2 uses Drift's short sword to save Chromedome's life and thus... sacrifice Dominus Ambus.
• Whirl notes that Tailgate was "wearing Cyclonus's energon for a while," as seen in issue #49.
• Nightbeat is told off by Minimus Ambus for "doing that thing again" - using an extended metaphor, in this case "marinating in a rich gravy of trouble." It was actually Skids who used to do this, back in Signal to Noise, where he referred to "a rich tapestry of trouble... shades of trouble so multifaceted that you probably have to take several steps back to fully appreciate the breadth and scale of the trouble we're in." And Minimus was unconscious at the time.

Real-life references

• As with the previous chapters, this issue's title (and the title of the multi-parter itself) is taken from the poem "Do not go gentle into that good night," by Dylan Thomas.
• Velocity notes that Ultra Magnus wanted to read the group a poem "about poppies." The poem, as alluded to by the "next issue" caption, is "In Flanders Fields", by John McCrae, a memorial poem about the trench warfare that took place in the poppy fields of Flanders, Belgium, in World War I. Such warfare often involved the tactic of "going over the top," charging towards enemy forces and facing near-certain death, hence the evocative use of the poem here, paralleling the crew's actions.
• Given the above, it's likely no coincidence that the Necroworld is covered with flowers.

Errors

This is not the right moment for ventriloquism.

• On page five, Nautica invites the gang to be her "amica endura" (singular), when the plural has previously been established by Nightbeat as "amica endurae." (If we want to get really technical, the Latin pluralization should be "amicae endurae.") This is corrected in the trade paperback.
• On page eight, Minimus says Dominus was "even more sensitive about his height that I was," instead of "than I was." This is corrected in the trade paperback.
• The trade paperback actually creates an error — it adds a link to Rewind's dialogue bubble in the scene where he's holding the downed Chromedome. The bubble is linked... to something off-panel, when it is clear that the dialogue is supposed to be Rewind's.
• On page seventeen, Ten holds up Megatron's newly built cannon with both hands... except he lost his left arm last issue. You might think he's been repaired since then, but next issue shows him to still be missing the limb, so this scene is definitely a goof.

Other trivia

• In addition to cans of Kremzeek-brand drink, Easter eggs scattered around Priscilla Tramontano's retailer incentive cover for this issue include a curly straw and Ten's doll of Minimus Ambus from issue #40. A sign promotes a poetry reading with the small-print warning that "non-attendance will result in punishment."
• Back in issue #14, Prowl indicated there was a dark secret in Chromedome's past that he wouldn't want Rewind to know about. This secret would never be revealed in the comic, but at TFcon USA 2018, James Roberts explained that, originally, he had envisioned that Chromedome was "complicit" in Dominus Ambus's disappearance, having helped Prowl place Dominus undercover as "Agent 113," presumably through some judicious application of mnemosurgery. Specifically Chromedome would have also performed mnemosurgery on Rewind, so that he would be unaware of Dominus's fate, and the circumstances leading up to it. This would mean that the pair would have met prior to #12's flashback, and that Chromedome had keep this from Rewind throughout their entire relationship. Roberts explained that he discarded the idea because he didn't want to make another romantic couple suffer in his stories, and explicitly deemed it "non-canon."
• Milne actually inked an additional two pages before learning that Sakamoto would be drawing them instead.^[1]

Soundtrack

For all of "The Dying of the Light":

• "Hurt" by Johnny Cash

For this issue alone:

• "Make Your Move" by The Delgados^[2]
• "Little Things (That Keep Us Together)" by Scott Walker^[3]
• "Into Dust" by Mazzy Star^[4]
• "Out of Time" by Blur^[5]

Covers (3)

• Regular cover: Skids, Nautica, and Minimus Ambus surrounded by drill-spikes, by Alex Milne and Josh Perez
• Subscription cover: Deathsaurus, Overlord, Tarn, and what's left of Kaon, by Hayato Sakamoto and Josh Burcham
• Retailer incentive cover: Swerve tends bar, by Priscilla Tramontano; one of two retailer incentive variants by Tramontano on this month's IDW Transformers titles.

• 

  Do NOT want!

• 

  Overlord always giggles at mayhem.

• 

  Gimme a clean martini in a dirty Kremzeek glass!

Advertisements

• More than Meets the Eye #54
• The Transformers #53
• Sins of the Wreckers #5
• Till All Are One
• Transformers vs. G.I. Joe #13
• IDW Transformers reading guide
• IDW online comics (back cover)

Reprints

• The Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye Volume 10 (October 5, 2016) ISBN 1631407163 / ISBN 978-1631407161
  • Collects More than Meets the Eye issues #50–55.
  • Bonus material includes covers of each issue.
  • Trade paperback format.

• Transformers: The Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 72: The Dying of the Light (January 24, 2018)
  • Collects More than Meets the Eye issues #50–55.
  • Bonus material includes the bonus story "No Guns, No Swords, No Briefcases", essential background material on the DJD, a cover gallery and a forward by Simon Furman.
  • Hardcover format.

• The Transformers: The IDW Collection Phase Two: Volume 11 (June 17, 2020) ISBN 1684056403 / ISBN 978-1684056408
  • Collects The Transformers Holiday Special: Silent Light, Redemption, The Transformers (2012) issues #46–50 & "New Worlds Order", and More than Meets the Eye issues #50–55 & "No Guns, No Swords, No Briefcases".
  • Hardcover format.

• 

  More Than Meets the Eye Volume 10 – cover art by Alex Milne and Joana Lafuente

• 

  The Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 72: The Dying of the Light – cover art by Don Figueroa (Cyclonus) and Alex Milne (retro)

• 

  The IDW Collection Phase Two: Volume 11 – cover art by Marcelo Matere

References

External links

• Preview