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[Spoilers] Lux: Issue Nr. 1 - Feedback, Discussion and Questions

LordRedStone Nr1·5/8/2019, 4:40:12 PM·21 votes·21,581 views
https://universe.leagueoflegends.com/en_US/comic/lux/issue-1/0/

#Intro

Hey everyone, I'm LordRedStone and I wanted to do discussion threads for the Lux comic series that started today, similar to the threads about Ashe: Warmother from The Iceborn. Obviously, I will discuss the plot of the current issue as well as all previous issues, so this will contain spoilers. However, I will wait for the Universe release before I post my threads, so everyone who wants to read the comic for free there has a chance to do so.

I'll give a short summary of what happened, then go deeper into interesting details we learned about the characters, different cities or Demacia as a whole. Finally, I want to pose some questions and I would very much appreciate if John O'Bryan, Odin or someone else working on the comic could answer at least some of them. (No spoilers for future issues though!)

#Spoilers! Last warning!

Summary

https://universe-meeps.leagueoflegends.com/v1/assets/images/comic-series/luxcomic/Luxcomic-issue-1-link.jpg

We start off in the ruined city of Demacia, where Lux introduces us via some narration. This narration style is similar to the one found in Ashe: Warmother. What's notable is that we find the teaser phrase "It was my light that did this" on the very first page. I could call that foreshadowing, but I think it was obvious to anyone who has been keeping up with the lore and read about Sylas. Lux carries a wounded Garen somewhere, and then we jump back to the present.

Garen and Lux ride through the city (the same street that was destroyed in the first image) and have a conversation about a "witch" when a mage tries to flee from the mageseekers. Lux goes to help some bystander wounded by the mage, and Garen runs after the villain. He smashes down a bridge in an epic move, and they manage to arrest the young mage. there is some more conversation about the mages and the anti-magical laws, and Sylas of Dregbourne is mentioned. In the process, Lux' hand starts to glow. She tries to contain it but her old tricks fail. In the narration, she is worried about Garen seeing it. "Maybe he's never seen it."

Lux then decides to look for information in the headquarter of the mageseekers, where they keep all confiscated books and magical stuff. In the night, she is allowed into the headquarters due to her special position as a child of the crownguard familiy, as well as her position in the Illuminators. She is looking to contain her light, but does not find anything useful. In the meantime, Garen discusses with their aunt Tianna (once Leader of the DV, now advisor to the king) what they should do about Lux. Apparently both know about her disregard for the laws against magic, and worse, about her powers. They talk about the possibility of marrying her to Prince Jarvan IV Lightshield, where she would be safe from the mageseekers.

Back to Lux, she has not found anything on her powers and decides to look around in the headquarters. She winds up in the cells, where she is stopped by guards. After introducing herself with the Crownguard name, she gets a free tour around the dungeons. (Apparently the name is stronger than her position with the Illuminators.) She sees the horror of the imprisoned mages, who can not be sent to the hinterlands, and finally winds up on the door to Sylas' cell. The warden sends her in, but stays outside. We get to see a creepy Sylas, who tells her they are so very much alike, and then the issue is over.

People & Places

Lux https://universe-meeps.leagueoflegends.com/v1/assets/images/demacia-sketches/lux-demacia-sketch.jpg

Lux clearly is afraid of her powers, but can't contain them. The last time that has happened, she got help from the Illuminators (according to her color story and some bits in Flesh and Stone) but now even that is failing. She is clearly growing stronger and stronger and can't control her powers anymore. She is so desperate for help, but can ask no one because that would get her imprisoned or exiled. So she turns to the mageseeker headquarters to look for something, anything, that could help her, she does not find it, but stumbles upon a creepy prisoner.

I really liked the art style and the portrayal of Lux, only one thing bothers me: Boob plate. I guess they kept it because of her iconic look, but that still does not make it good armor design. Even if it's just ceremonial, to look good, please just don't.

Garen https://universe-meeps.leagueoflegends.com/v1/assets/images/demacia-sketches/garen-demacia-sketch.jpg

Garen is the strong warrior like he is supposed to be, he stops a criminal on the streets, as his duty as Sword-Captain of the Dauntless Vanguard commands. (It's not clear that he is the sword-captain, but he is addressed as "Captain" so I figured he should be sword-captain by now. Keep in mind that this happens some weeks before Sylas' release, so at the latest point of their story arcs.) When at home, he reveals how deeply he cares for Lux: He tries to protect her at any cost and wants to have her marry the prince (which, let's be honest, wouldn't be too bad).

Sylas and the Revolution https://universe-meeps.leagueoflegends.com/v1/assets/images/turmoil_bg.jpg

Sylas is still imprisoned, so there is not much of a revolution going on. We see almost nothing of him, but when he finally steps out of the shadow, he's creepy as f*ck. Exactly how I imagined it, excellent art, would not want to see again. It gets even better (or worse, it depends) when you see the cover for the next issue here.

Demacia https://universe.leagueoflegends.com/images/demacia_emblem.png

We get to see some of the "Great City of Demacia", which looks stunning. Probably one of the best places to live, if you are not a mage. Sad to see that bridge destroyed. Of course, we also get a look at the darker side, the imprisoned mages. If just the prisoners in the retaining cells are desperate and almost starving, then what is going on even further down? They are in petricite shackles and occasionally forced to drink petricite elixir, and you can see they are in great agony. Of course, these are the worst mages, most of them are sent into exile in the hinterlands, but it's still a glimpse of the dark side of the law that Lux has seen.

Final thoughts

That was definitely an interesting first issue. We saw Demacia burn, probably due to Sylas and his revolution, then cut back to Lux and Garen where all seems well. Demacia is doing great, but we already see some of the anti-mage-laws in Demacia, especially when they chase down a criminal, but for now they accept mages that are benign. As we knew from Turmoil and Demacian Heart, Mages can choose to be registered and not use their powers, but are allowed to live in exile in the "hinterlands". Only after Sylas' revolution they started to imprison all of them.

I liked the hints of other stories and cameos in this issue: The panel where Lux went to help an injured man buried under rocks reminded me of her color story Last Light where she arrives after an earthquake. Then Garen also mentioned a "Witch in the Woods", which to me looks like a nod to his color story, The Soldier and the Hag. Also, there is the seemingly less important NPC who lets her enter the library and introduces himself as Jaredan. Riot Jaredan maybe?

So as a conclusion, nothing major has happened here, but the most important thing is that she met Sylas. It's been a great issue setting up the location, the anti-mage-policies and Lux' inner conflict.Now we have to wait for the next issue to find out what Sylas can teach Lux... and what happens then.

Questions

I had some questions, mostly regarding the timeline of this series and the connection to the other lore, as well as a question about the different versions of the comic.

  1. How old are Garen and Lux during this issue? I assume it's close to Sylas breaking out, so they must be around 20-25 years old. Is that correct?
  2. What happened to Tianna? Can you tell us more about the former Sword-Captain, now High Marshal to the king?
  3. Unrelated to the series, but are the Lightbringers and Illuminators the same order? Is one of these organizations a part of the other one? What about the Radiant Ones? (Or is that too spoiler-y?) For Demacia mentions the "Lightbringers", but Lux' biography and her color story Last Light call them "Illuminators". On the map and the universe page for Demacia, they are once again called "Lightbringers". In this comic, it's "Illuminators" again. I just would like some clarification, unless that will be answered in a future issue.
  4. When does this happen in relation to other important events of the Lore, such as the Ascension of Azir, the Battle of the Placidium or Swain's rise to power? I would like to see any connection to current events so we can sort stuff into a timeline, but for now Demacia has no connection to any other nation: Their lore reflects their isolationist politics.
  5. How can we buy this comic to support you and the lore team? Are there special editions again? If so, what bonus material do they include?

Thanks for reading this far! Let me know what you think of this issue and maybe add your own thoughts and questions for the writers!

76 Comments

Riota highwayman5/9/2019, 3:24:08 AM17 votes

Hey, thanks so much for reading! I'm Mary, the Riot editor on the comics team -- here are some quick non-spoiler answers to your questions, with my apologies that these aren't super in-depth:

How old are Garen and Lux during this issue? I assume it's close to Sylas breaking out, so they must be around 20-25 years old. Is that correct?

Yep. We're thinking Garen is about 25 and Lux is about 19 in the comic.

What happened to Tianna? Can you tell us more about the former Sword-Captain, now High Marshal to the king?

The comic won't be super-focused on Tianna, so I'll leave her stories for a future time, but she does show up again in the series.

Unrelated to the series, but are the Lightbringers and Illuminators the same order? Is one of these organizations a part of the other one? What about the Radiant Ones? (Or is that too spoiler-y?)

For the sake of clarity, we're trying to default to using "Illuminators" consistently and phasing out "Lightbringers" -- they're the same organization. The Radiant Ones are a special unit of the Illuminators. Without wanting to spoil anything, in this comic, we're not touching on the Radiant Ones, but that doesn't mean Lux will no longer be connected to them -- just that she's not yet a member of that elite group at the time of these specific events.

When does this happen in relation to other important events of the Lore, such as the Ascension of Azir, the Battle of the Placidium or Swain's rise to power?

This is a great question that I unfortunately can't publicly answer 100% confidently right now, but it's something we're paying attention to internally. I know this is an underwhelming answer.

How can we buy this comic to support you and the lore team? Are there special editions again? If so, what bonus material do they include?

I'm always moved when people ask this question. THANK YOU! We're not doing special editions this time, but you can still buy single issues digitally on Comixology if you prefer that reading experience. We are also totally happy when people read it for free on Universe! The physical collection of the complete series releases in November and is up for pre-order on Amazon. If you have a local comics shop, you can also ask them to order a copy for you, which helps support the store and encourages them to consider stocking future League comics. Letting them know it's published by Marvel and comes out in November will help them find it.

We haven't decided exactly what bonus material to include in the collection yet, but I personally love backmatter, so I'll always push to get something special in there if it's possible. If you have things you'd particularly like to see in bonus content in the future, I'd love to hear about that, too! I'm a little internet-shy and don't post often, but I do check the boards, and I'm very interested in hearing what you all like (or don't like) and what you want to see more of.

Finally... regarding boob-plate. Yeah. So. Honest answer: we're experimenting with a few things in the comics right now, and one of those things is character recognizability. Lux is maximally on-model here, and my personal takeaway is that a more varied take on outfits will often be a good call in future series.

Thanks for checking out the comic, and for taking the time to post this!

CHODES AND LOADS5/8/2019, 6:38:04 PM12 votes

skipped through it and didnt see a single panel of lux getting railed by ezreal 0/10 not readin that shit

Falrein5/8/2019, 4:54:36 PM7 votes

I don't have much to say, great issue! I really like the story and the art. I think this series is gonna be great. My only complaint is about that hideous boob plate but well :p I hope this series goes well, so that the comics can continue. Given how interesting they have been so far, I'd love for my mains to have one someday. Can't wait to see what's coming. I've already pre-ordered the paper trade version! [sg-lux]

PhoenixOrtu5/8/2019, 5:22:18 PM6 votes

There is one thing that bugs me a bit... Everyone seems perfectly cool with Garen casually destroying a solid stone structure. Like are the buildings in Demacia super fragile? Or is Garen just freakishly strong? I'm secretly hoping Garen might have some secrets of his own, but I guess we'll see, until then I'd like to know if anyone else find it weird.

Other than that, good first issue, looking forward to the next.

RiotRiotJaredan5/14/2019, 7:34:52 PM5 votes

I look good in a helmet.

Whyte Lyon5/8/2019, 10:19:56 PM4 votes

I love how convenient Lux can recall when the Rune Wars were. A 1000 years is an incredibly long time, long enough where knowledge of exact history becomes very mythical/obscure, misinterpreted or could be forgotten especially by the mass population.

That would be like being able to date near exactly when the Pyramids were built. Short of having Google readily available, you should struggle to even guess-timate.

Terozu5/8/2019, 10:57:28 PM4 votes

As for Lux's age, they called her a school girl and she's currently a cadet in the illuminators.

Since Garen is in the DV, and he finished his training when she was 16, it can be assumed she's somewhere around 17-19, which is older than her previously stated age of 16-17, so progress, YAY!.

Blood Mefist5/8/2019, 8:20:16 PM4 votes

Maybe I missed something, but how does anyone perform magic inside Demacian walls? Wouldn't any attempted magic just get absorbed by any piece of infrastructure since everything is made of Petricite? Otherwise, liked the comic! Hope we get to see more of the aunt and other Crownguard family.

Camille Ferrøs5/8/2019, 9:40:51 PM2 votes

What's going on with Garen's hair???

ZaneShadow5/9/2019, 4:45:47 PM2 votes

I really loved this comic! When Garn and his aunt mentioned marrying her to Jarvan, couldn’t help but wonder “where are you, Jarro Lightfeather?”

Not that marrying Jarvan would be terrible, seems nice and pretty open minded for a demacian, but I still think the Lux and Ezreal ship is my favorite, plus I’m silly and for some reason believe Jarvan x Shyvana is a thing.

Maisanai5/9/2019, 5:01:12 PM2 votes

why is her aunt wearing those ridiculous heels? how could she fight in that? Or are they supposed to be part of a ceremonial armor set since they're in the city and not going to battle? Still seems silly to me.

Confused Taco5/8/2019, 11:30:24 PM1 votes

Does anyone know if they ever printed the Ashe Warmother series? Was it just a Ebook? I know theres the book releasing on May 14, but i was wondering if they printed issues 1-4 separately.