I have a rock collection

20 y/o, she/her. The gods of writing are chill with me.

[brightrednight]

Hey my basic bitches!

Please consider this post blanket permission to continue off of any story I write. I don't want it posted to another site, but Tumblr is okay! And please tag me so I can see your work!

ao3: TotallyARealPerson

Love you all! Keep it classy :P

[tossawary]

Chatting with someone about recent Pixar films compared to "golden age"(?) Pixar films... I don't really have coherent examples of this, but I feel like some of their weakest films (and weak speculative fiction generally) get too caught up in... the metaphor? The allegory? The underlying theme?

Like, I think "Finding Nemo" is a great film. And people will say, "It's not JUST a film about cartoon fish! It's also about parent-child relationships and suffocating overprotectiveness and learning to let your child be independent!" Which is true. I think that's a very true statement. That IS the emotional core of the movie.

But I also think "Finding Nemo" is great and works as a film because it also respects and explores the setting in a straightforward way. It's also a movie about how genuinely scary it would be to be a small fish in a big, wonderous, terrifying ocean. It's asking, "What would it be like to be a fish going through this experience?"

The original world of "Toy Story" is compelling and delightfully disturbing, because it's asking, "What would it be like to be a toy?" And "A Bug's Life" is similarly asking, "What might it be like to be a bug?" And "Monsters Inc." is asking, "Why might monsters scare children at night?" All of these movies have strong emotional cores and allegories and all that jazz, but they're also engaging with these speculative prompts in a forthright way.

I'm reminded of a joke post that I saw about "The Hobbit" in which Bilbo says, "Ohhh, I get it! The dragon is a metaphor for greed!" And Thorin replies, "Bilbo, it's a real dragon and it's in my house." Like, there IS a lot about Smaug that's neat thematically, for sure, but also... for the fantasy setting to work, you do have to keep in mind the dangerous, logistical realities of a big, fire-breathing, man-eating lizard, which Tolkien obviously very much does.

Like, I saw "Elemental" and I kind of thought... the movie was maybe too caught up in being a metaphor for interracial relationships, possibly at the expense of the speculative worldbuilding. I don't think the movie engaged enough with the fact that marginalized fire-person Ember lives in a city full of water features that could apparently injure or even kill her. I think that the movie pulled a lot of its punches in regards to structural racism.

I thought that "Onward" was particularly disinterested in its own setting and the logic of it. Most of the fantasy elements were gags. It's a "normal" generic modern setting with speculative elements pasted on top, rather than a new world with the speculative elements integrated in unique ways that changed the way that people did things, you know? A society disregarding clearly very powerful magic (and all magical history) in favour of mildly more convenient lightbulbs doesn't actually make sense in-universe. It's, idk, the story forcibly simplifying itself just to call modern society lazy and incurious, which isn't an interesting statement.

I don't remember "Luca" and "Soul" very well, so I won't really comment on them here. I liked "Turning Red" well enough and I think its specific Chinese-Canadian setting worked fine for it. And I think "Inside Out" generally works as well, because it's specifically about how messy it inwardly feels to be even a "normal" preteen / teenage girl; a lot is smoothed over by it all being inside Riley's head. "Lightyear" was... I don't know how to get started on that mess, so I will not start.

Anyway, my point is: I think that with speculative fiction, it IS good and important to keep your themes and messages and emotional cores in mind! I just think you do have to also engage with the reality of the world you have going on, so that the story actually feels logical and well-grounded and unique. Sometimes, a dragon has also got to be a literal dragon, you know?

[pandorasvoice]

I'm biased but shouldn't the destruction of Coast City be a bigger deal in-universe? A major US city got nuked to dust so where's the fallout for people who aren't Hal Jordan? Did civilians doubt the Justice League afterward? Was the trust in superheroes shaken? Was there a congressional hearing to decide if someone could have done something more to prevent the death of 7 million people? It feels like it had less effect on the world than 9/11. This shit should be referenced more often outside Hal's comics as the colossal failure to protect civilian lives that it was.

[bookkeeper-of-oa]

Adding onto this, the fact that Coast City got glassed by an alien warlord and his armada of ships realistically should have resulted in a global backlash against extraterrestrials of all kinds. 7,000,000+ lives being wiped out in a cataclysmic invasion is the sort of thing that would traumatize humanity for generations tbh

The only in-universe reasons I can think of as to why this didn't happen is that this kind of world-shattering event is fairly commonplace in DC's universe or that Earth had a lot of experience with "friendly aliens" like Superman, Martian Manhunter, Starfire, etc. being superheroes and helping people, so the general public somehow understood that Mongul was not reflective of aliens as a whole.

[brightrednight]

yes, but even then, 9/11 was dramatically less important on the global scale than you're thinking it is. the only truly two truly notable things that happened is that a plane got hijacked and the passengers retook control, and in the immediate aftermath america invoked Article 5 of the NATO alliance.

yes, it was a tragedy, but it was primarily flanderized to all hell in the media not only because several thousand people died, but because america really wanted afghani oil and they used the tragedy as a cudgel against the middle east. there's not really a better way to describe the way they used it as an excuse to systematically destroy the afghani culture and people for the sake of getting one guy's head on a pike.

with that logic, they could've very easily "you're one of the good ones"ed the super aliens in the League. Or could've still propagandized the importance of interstellar defense, and casually ignored/buried the very visible presence of aliens in the league the way the military does about the overwhelming presence of POC.

or simply reframed the existence of the league/league aliens as a snake in long grass. the template for cyborg superman was superman.

i can't remember if it was during this era that Lex Luthor was the president yet, but it really seems out of character for him not to have made use of it as a cudgel against superman/kyptonians.

[solarpunkfool]

What if we win?

What if the children go to schools unafraid of tear gas and bullets?

What if the birds come back, and the bees are healed, and every species moves from endangered, to threatened, to thriving?

What if the rainforest ADVANCES?

What if every parking lot had solar panels? What if every structure had solar panels? What if we built climbing gyms and terraced gardens in the skeletons of old coal power plants?

What if you baked your neighbor bread, and they shared their home-grown blackberries?

What if every person who needed a home, had one? What if every person who needed healing was healed?

What if every body was treasured for what it was, not what it should be?

What if every trans child's parents attended their graduation, their wedding, their new-name-day?

What if every warehouse became a closed-circle repair station? Goods flowing out, and back, and out again? What if landfills started to SHRINK?

What if the water and air were clean? What if there was enough public transit that the cars dwindled, leaving the streets safe for kids on bikes, evening deer, midnight cats and foxes?

What if we win?

How would you win?

[sinhalcarol]

i have my complicated feelings when it comes to the parallax retcon where yeah i Do dislike it most of the time but also see the potential in it but can i just say i absolutely hatee it when other characters besides hal get to be parallax. not a single occasion where I've genuinely liked it and also because the more people that get possessed by the entity the more it feels like the impact of hal's parallax era is cheapened

[brightrednight]

the better thing to do would've been so each Entity has a special little guy they kindasorta use as a skinsuit.

sorry hal but you're irrevocably connected to the aspect of fear now. Parallax picked you and he'll only ever pick one in the whole entire universe across all of time. don't you feel lucky? you're joining the ranks of larfleeze and his relationship with Ophidian. Fear lives under your skin, nestles against your bones, you can't escape it no matter how far you run, and when you look in the mirror, Fear smiles back with needle-teeth.

[rendiamberspirit]

I don't think there is enough appreciation for the hard work Tobirama put into being able to defeat Izuna.

Izuna had a serious advantage with the sharingan, he could copy any jutsu, it helped him predict movements, see chakra not to mention the insane genjutsu Izuna was capable of.

I see a lot of stories where Izuna has to train his ass off to keep up with Tobirama.

But Izuna actually says he feels bad for people without the sharingan. (Or something along those lines)

He feels confident in his ability to beat Tobirama because he has a superior dojutsu.

Tobirama only defeated Izuna through hard work and dedication into developing a jutsu that could surpass the speed of the sharingan.

Tobirama is a bad ass. Who worked hard to get where he was.

It wasn't Madara who constantly worried that Izuna would be defeated, it was Hashirama. He knows his brother is strong and smart. But Izuna is faster, and can predict Tobirama's movements. He's always in fear of the day Tobirama can't keep up. The day that Izuna traps him in a genjutsu he can't escape.

It doesn't feel like an if for him, but a when.

That's why he is so desperate for peace, he doesn't want to lose his last little brother.

Madara on the other hand doesn't have that same fear, he is cocky and trusts his brother is the superior Shinobi.

Which is why he abandons his men on the battlefield when Izuna is injured. It is 100% fight or flight. He is terrified, he never thought this day could come. He wasn't prepared for it. He acted on instinct.

Hashirama goes home and hugs his brother so tight. He doesn't have to worry about him dying at Izuna's hand any more. His little brother is safe. He feels a deep sadness for Madara, he never wanted his former friend to lose his last little brother. But he is insanely relieved it was Izuna not Tobirama. He saw the way Izuna tossed Tobirama down on that rock. He had worried his little brother wouldn't be able to defend in time, or get up before Izuna got to him. That's what drew Madara's attention to their fight, because Hashirama was already looking over.

Hashirama wishes Madara had accepted peace so both their brothers could have been safe. But at least he knows Tobirama is.

Very tempted to turn this into a fic but I already have so many.

[brightrednight]

Izuna was, in fact, so entirely assured of his superiority via the Sharingan eyes that in that final battle where Tobirama struck him, he wasn't even wearing armor.

[brightrednight]

okay why is the autistic savant character in media ALWAYS a chess nerd? for real. chess is too esoteric for me because there's too many things to keep track of and i always forget that my bishop was stuck in C5 cause it was guarding my king. give me a mancala nerd for once.

[blade-liger-4ever]

I was thinking and. tfp would've been better served with just two human child characters.

They're all extremely different characters with their own stories, but splitting the focus too much made all of them suffer a bit, and Raf is just there most of the time to be Bumblebee's mouthpiece or do computer stuff.

So:

Miko is still loud, abrasive, jarring, impulsive, and a troublemaker. But being an exchange student means she should be visibly smart, and giving her computer skills would've been such a testament to her character, her education, and given her a lot of depth early on. Yes, she gets in detention five times a week and runs on the battlefield every day on the weekend, but she also knows how to code like it's nobody's business, so she also knows how to sit still and take stuff in it's just incredibly boring if she's not interested. All that random esoteric knowledge Raf knows about the US government could also be explained away by her wanting to know stuff about the country she's visiting and using that info to weigh the pros and cons of where in the world to go.

Jack can understand Bumblebee. Making him suddenly be the older brother to a fourteen-year-old would be so incredibly wholesome, and it would give him a better reason to have an overinflated sense of responsibility and leadership. If he still has a job with KO Burger, trying to explain the concept of currency might highlight just how different their upbringings have been. It would also set up his interactions with Smokescreen as a guide later on, and it immediately establishes a more brotherly relationship between Smokescreen and Bumblebee.

idk I also think it might be cool for June to flip out about how Jack was able to afford a sports car. like wtf did you DO? are you selling DRUGS?! I AM A NURSE, I COULD LOSE MY LISCENSE! just a very reasonable crashout from a very stressed mother & medical professional who's been given no real explanation. (You could set up the illegal street racing episode early on, even - Jack knows about it and says he bought it used and practically a wreck. Or June has treated too many race victims and threatens to confiscate if he ever does go out racing. Or both!)

Arcee would also be able to properly grieve without someone else to take care of, and it would be cool to give her solo episodes. Imagine if there were no Jack for her to worry about in Predatory?

You could also directly parallel Orion Pax and Megatronus. Bookworm that's ridiculously good at coding who keeps getting into trouble and headstrong leader that can't seem to control people around him but they're both insufferably fond of each other (ie Jack and Miko have bonded to each other because they're the only other one they can talk to abt this)? smells like a fun blast from the past.

You can get a lot more story per character if you reduce your cast size even by one.

Honestly, kudos to you man. That fixes so many things.

I like how you suggested Miko being the brainy computer geek in addition (I assume) to her love of heavy metal. That would have also shown off just why she's an exchange student, as not just anybody gets to go to a different country for lessons.

Jack's setup, as you posited, works beautifully. That would have given Bumblebee more to do, Jack an actual reason to be "Mr. Responsible", and having that blowout between mother and son over the New Car that her son suddenly has would've enhanced the story. And yeah, Arcee should've been a solo character; by putting her with Jack she's basically getting a crutch who won't really improve her behavior, but left alone she's gotta deal with the hard truth and grow from it.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts man, that really is a good idea.

[brightrednight]

As it turns out, I'm not done, apparently.

Guess who gets the shot of dark energon in One Shall Fall? Jack. Guess who calls Jack's mom to fix her dying son? Miko. (Character establishing moment - Miko finds June annoying but won't let it get in the way of letting her friend live). Guess who'll be ten times more pissed off that the Autobots let a teenaged child get hurt because in this verse it's her son? June.

Guess what else? Jack is pretty physiologically fragile at this point. June has perhaps permanently lost all trust in the Autobots. Fowler's obligated to report anything "interesting or important" to his government. That leaves Miko, who isn't willing to curb her opinions about people for anyone or anything but will 10000% call them when she needs their help, and then two minutes later will roar at a bitch (June) for trying to take her out of base and then roar at a different bitch (Megatron) for hurting her friend, as the best option for holding the Key for Vector Sigma.

Optimus: whoever holds the key for Vector Sigma should be kind, strong, and resilient. Miko: YOU DOUBLE-CROSS ANYONE, MINE IS THE FACE YOU'LL NEVER FORGET, DICKFACE! Optimus: I want that one.

[blade-liger-4ever]

How Persistent Use of Foils Ruined the Characterization of Optimus' Subordinates in Prime

Look, despite my posts taking on the problematic writing choices of TFP (including this one), I do love the show. It helped draw me further into the Transformers lore and universe, and taught me a decent bit about writing.

The thing is, it wasn't perfect like I used to believe it was. Furthermore, as I look back on the show, I realize that there were poor writing choices that lay totally at the writers' feet and not at Hasbro's, though they bear much of the burden nonetheless.

With these posts - or ones like this one, at least - I think I'm merely trying to both come to terms with and elaborate on the worse choices TFP made in order to get a better idea of how to write not just for myself, but for others.

Now, without further ado, let's get into this.

Optimus' rivalry with - and antithesis in - Megatron is not just a given due to them being the leaders of their respective factions, but has been a staple of the Transformers franchise since 1984. This is because they represent the best and worst of their homeworld, and as such it is intrinsically necessary to have them standing as mirrors of what the other could have become if they had made different choices. It works beautifully, and seeing them so radically different while adding in the newer addition of a failed friendship between the two before the Autobots and Decepticons formed is grounds for a slew of emotional moments with Optimus, a downplayed version of such feelings with Megatron, or even the occasional outburst when they clash on Earth.

But the writers, due to their professed love of Arcee and becoming enamored of the idea of foils, struck their writing in its Achilles' Heel by giving two to three characters a foil: Arcee vs Airachnid, Bulkhead vs Breakdown, and even Ratchet vs Knock Out, though this last one was more superficial.

Aside from taking the focus away from Optimus when his name is literally the title of the series, the Arcee vs Airachnid fixation actually stunts Arcee's arc while propelling Airachnid out of the shadow of simply being Arcee's nemesis.

See, throughout the series, Arcee gets consumed by her lust for revenge over Airachnid to the point that not only do her supposed "learning experiences" from each episode become moot every time the latter returns, Arcee is actually the one who cannot and will not move on from the wrongs Airachnid has done to her. Her whole existence revolves around killing Airachnid, to get even for the Arachnicon ruining her relationships/killing her partners, and the only reason this cancerous plot tumor is done away with is because the writers locked Airachnid up and - this is the important part - Arcee fades into obscurity from the plot.

Name one episode where she got the spotlight after "Armada" when Airachnid was done away with. It's not there, because she became irrelevant once the source of her relevancy disappeared. Because honestly, Arcee had no purpose in the show after the fact beyond additional fighters and abusing the heck out of Smokescreen.

But when you look at Airachnid, her initial appearance as the ghost of Arcee's past is quickly done away with by how quickly she climbs the Decepticon ranks.

Once brought back to the Nemesis with Breakdown, Airachnid proves her worth as a commanding officer and even takes Starscream's role as both Megatron's second-in-command and scheming #2. I kid you not, the way she moves up the chain of command and begins turning her new situation (and Megatron's brief absence) to her advantage make her a more intimidating and memorable character than just being "Arcee's foil". Now, to work her in elsewhere, you'd have to do something other than introducing her as Arcee or whomever else's archenemy/source of PTSD, but otherwise? The femme stands on her own legs just fine without being defined by Arcee, at least after her solo act, but even that solo act shows us how flexible and adaptive a character Airachnid is.

She earns her place as a fresh new character begging to be used, while Arcee ends up rotting in the past with how Airachnid, living rent free in her head, dictates her whole personality.

With Bulkhead and Breakdown, it's marginally better. Despite only knowing they "have a history" (and that Breakdown never actually does anything worse than throw a pillar at Miko when he knew Bulkhead would dive between the two), it's fairly evenhanded in how Breakdown's existence isn't dependent upon Bulkhead, and for his part, Bulkhead can have focuses outside of Breakdown.

However, Bulkhead still suffers for it.

Similar to the prior example, Bulkhead's relevancy ends up taking a turn for the worse when Breakdown is unjustly killed off. Yes, he has an arc with how he feels useless as he's healing and Smokescreen's racking up an impressive record with little struggle, but when that's done?

Bulkhead fades into the background.

And Breakdown shines forward.

From the beginning, Breakdown is allowed to have a life outside of being Bulkhead's rival. He's shown to be a loyal soldier to Megatron, has a kind streak that only the Vehicons really witness, and is buddy-buddy enough with Knock Out that he won't backhand the doctor into a wall for taking his attention away from fixing Megatron's comatose frame. Additionally, Breakdown was even getting a redemption arc that, for some reason I'll never fathom, was nixed "for budget cuts". And frankly?

Bulkhead should have been the one who died.

We already saw that he ended up serving no purpose after Breakdown's untimely demise, and while Miko's development flourished thanks to his (second) near death experience, you could have gotten much more if he bit the bullet instead of Breakdown.

Imagine, for a moment. Dreadwing's bomb kills Bulkhead in the end, and Breakdown grapples with the fact that not only is his old enemy gone courtesy of a newcomer, but it was for vengeance. Sure, the 'Bots did horrible by Skyquake, but Bulkhead had nothing to do with that. And wait, if he's willing to go that far even by accident, what odds do I stand if I end up between him and one of the 'Bots? And Lord Megatron's alright with this - not just the death of a 'Bot, but the method....

Primus, what did I sign up for?!

This way, you could have opened up three new storylines: Wheeljack struggling with going on suicide runs to avenge his best friend, Miko hot on his heels, and Breakdown cutting ties with the Decepticons to help the Autobots. And during this time, Wheeljack realizes that he's now got Miko to care for, and thus recognize the need to get himself under control as Miko is blindsided by the reality of the War/has her bubble of "everything's fine, everything's going to be fine" broken, and matures into the warrior we see in S3. Breakdown's joining would have both Wheeljack and Miko vehemently against him, but in time they'd warm up to Breakdown, especially if/when he goes out of his way to protect one or both. And when Smokescreen joins, Breakdown slowly drifts toward the Elite Guardsman because he knows how it feels to be treated like an outcast while Wheeljack ends up noticing the rookie's talents and backing him up against the others. Miko, having just lost one partner, is gonna cling to not just Wheeljack, but Breakdown because of how high on the totem poll for death he is with the 'Cons while she'll read Arcee the riot act for being two-faced over their need for fresh troops, yet treating Smokescreen like trash.

I won't say much on these two, but they were superficial foils to each other: one old, stuck in his ways, perpetually grumpy and unconcerned for his appearances, while the other is young, vain, highly adaptable/quick to break the Hippocratic oath and obsessed with his looks. Thankfully, we were spared seeing Ratchet and Knock Out going hammer and tongs throughout the series, with only the occasional confrontation to reinforce the stark contrast between them. Thus, from a visual standpoint, Ratchet and Knock Out acting as foils works because it's a situational difference in their professions.

Regardless, the writing suffered by a desire for an unlimited number of character foils, and for this, not only did the Autobot cast suffer irrelevancy by this choice, but the character growth we were teased with for Breakdown and Airachnid, and even the possible arcs we could have had for them, were thrown in the garbage bin simply because they were "disposable" Decepticons.

If you got this far, thanks for reading. And if this helped you, please reconsider the use of foils in your stories. It's best not to get caught in the traps that such an idea can hide.

Roll out, Autobots!

[jazzimena]

Interesting read, Blade!

As much as I love Prime, just like you and many others, a lot of the show’s issues just become more apparent as you grow older.

With that said, I completely agree that there should’ve been more focus on Optimus and Megatron’s relationship. Yes, you could find more of their interactions as Orion Pax and Megatronus in the novels, but it was a missed opportunity to not include more of their history in the show.

Though, I’d say that their fight scenes and dialogues do make up for it, since you can feel their centuries–long animosity. I also liked Optimus’ transition from considering Megatron’s possible redemption to being downright unforgiving...made me wish we had more Optimus–centric episodes (from his POV). Yes, he is stoic, but I want to know his thoughts on Megatron, the war, Team Prime, the kids/humanity, etc. I want to see him doubting his decisions, how tired he must be from this never–ending war, and how, despite everything, he forces himself to be strong for his team.

That’s why I also would’ve liked to see him lose his cool (ex. his frustrated scream when Starscream snagged all the Omega Keys) more often, since it shows that he’s not 100% unaffected by everything. I think one of the earlier drafts for Stronger, Faster was going to have Optimus punch Ratchet for bringing up Elita–1, but while I don’t think TFP Optimus would ever punch Ratchet or any other Autobot–what differentiates him and Megatron is that Megatron wouldn’t hesitate to strike or shoot anyone, including Decepticons–I would’ve loved to see him, say, reprimand Ratchet in a restrained yet visibly upset manner.

But as you said, it seems the writers were more interested to introduce more foils.

Now that you mentioned it, someone once said that the Prime in Transformers: Prime actually refers to Team Prime. While an interesting perspective, to me, it becomes questionable when you consider the many issues/inconsistencies within OG Team Prime’s own dynamics and characterization that was conveniently pushed aside by the writers (ex. how the team said that Wheeljack’s always welcomed to return and even introduced the concept of family to Ultra Magnus before accepting him, yet never extended the same courtesy to Smokescreen…as well as the many cases of insubordination and underlying hypocrisy). But hey, maybe that’s just me.

With that said, Arcee should’ve only had one partner, because to me, the way her hatred towards Airachnid trumped her hatred towards Starscream–despite him being the one who recently snuffed Cliffjumper–felt really off (though, giving her two revenge arcs would be too much). While Arcee was justified to want revenge after witnessing Tailgate’s murder right in front of her optics, what she doesn’t realize is that that’s exactly what Airachnid wants. Airachnid revels in psychological torture, and she knows Arcee will never stop pursuing her…that’s why the “ending” to their “rivalry” was very anti–climactic (similar to Bulkhead and Breakdown’s, where the latter’s conveniently “taken out”).

Honestly, I did feel that the writers struggled with what to do with Arcee Post–Armada, but even so, she did become the focus in Out of the Past (notice how she’s the only Autobot that got a flashback episode?). This episode’s one of my favorites because it shows Arcee’s more caring and warm side…but I just wished she didn’t make her compassion conditional. As you may know, her reading the riot act on Smokescreen when she’s so compassionate to Miko and Wheeljack left a bitter taste in my mouth. To me, it’s a poorly executed attempt at trying to make Arcee relevant/stand out (despite it highlighting the extent of her hypocrisy) in Airachnid’s absence.

Speaking of Airachnid, I wished she had more screentime. “Rivalry” aside, she’s a cunning and charismatic Decepticon with the way she quickly earned Megatron’s trust and rose up the Decepticon ranks, unafraid to take on the mantle of leader via quiet intimidation. I just wished we saw more of her beyond her rivalry with Arcee, especially her backstory in “collecting endangered species”, her connections with the insecticons, and how scary she must’ve been back in Cybertron (look, I’m just saying that if she’s capable of wiping out entire species, then it’s safe to assume that she probably had a high Autobot kill count during the war).

Now, Bulkhead and Breakdown’s beef was an actual, genuine, rivalry. Though, they could’ve been more interesting had the show explained how and why they initially butted heads. Was Breakdown an ex–Autobot/part of the wreckers? If so, did something happen that caused the two to have a falling out? Who knows. But to me, Bulkhead fading into the background Post–Human Factor didn’t feel as drastic or as sudden as it was for Arcee Post–Armada, since I feel that the show didn’t actively shine the spotlight on him (no offense to his fans) as often as they did Arcee (due to the many Arcee–centric episodes + the fact she’s basically the MC in the first few episodes). Though, it does help that he has close ties with ever–boisterous Miko and his long–time Wrecker buddy, Wheeljack, often making for a fun and enjoyable dynamic.

Now, Breakdown was done dirty by his sudden demise, especially when it was due to “budget cuts”. Though, unlike Airachnid whose sole purpose was to be Arcee’s “rival” (which I think is just an excuse to not give her more depth), Breakdown had a lot going on for him. No offense to Bulkhead fans, but I’ve seen some people saying that he should’ve died (as a way for Prime to maintain/salvage its “dark” atmosphere after Cliffjumper’s death). But that aside, the three new storylines you made were awesome! Just imagining Breakdown, Miko, Smokescreen, and Wheeljack forming their own Wrecker Quartet is something I’d love to see. You know, sometimes I can’t help but feel that the writers put more character depth into Breakdown instead of one of their main characters (which is unsurprising why folks prefer Animated Bulkhead).

On to Ratchet and Knockout…do you know that Knockout is actually Bumblebee’s foil? Maybe it’s just me, but I didn’t really feel any solid “rivalry” between the two aside from the skirmishes they had (Speed Metal, Operation: Bumblebee, Tunnel Vision, Hard Knocks). If anything, I thought that Knockout was either Ratchet or Smokescreen’s (in terms of loyalty, alt–mode choice, and even personality–wise) foil, which was why it was surprising to know that wasn’t the case.

But now that you’ve pointed it out, it does feel like the writers insist that every Autobot has a foil/rival. It’s not a problem when executed correctly, but boy does it say something when, right after 2/3 of these foils were conveniently taken out of the picture (sudden death and sent to Cybertron’s moon), your MCs struggle to define/act for themselves in their absence.

Really makes you wonder if things would've ended differently if Prime wasn't plagued by budget cuts, time constraints, and constant pressure...

[blade-liger-4ever]

Thanks, Jazzi!

Yeah, it's something where, the more you look back on it, TFP almost feels like an embarrassing teen phase with how many flaws begin to crop up.

Thank you! Seriously, what was the problem with focusing on them/Optimus? He couldn't even get an episode to himself; it's like the writers were afraid of having him open up for longer than ten seconds. Maybe that's because of all the burdens he's been shouldering would end up taking the focus away from Arcee, but whatever at this point (the problem with the novels is that not everyone at the time was gonna make the jump between cartoon and reading. I mean, I'd never heard of Exodus or Exiles until...two years after TFP ended? At least promote the books better.)

See, the dialogue is good, but it's only a few scraps to cling to otherwise. And, the more I consider it....Bayverse handled Optimus' moral dilemma better.

Hear me out.

One of the problems I loosely touched on in the original post and elsewhere is that, Optimus' team in TFP are basically self-absorbed teenagers, which means that 1 they're enabling each other's bad behavior, and 2 Optimus has to bottle up his emotions because no one else gives a dang about what he's going through. Which, by extension, is the poor reason for his tunnel vision every time he has Megatron at his mercy post S1.

The problem here? The show bends over backwards to keep Optimus from committing a crime (killing Megatron out of hatred rather than the need to save billions of lives.) Not to mention, with the way Bulkhead and the others constantly urge him to murder Megatron, the characters end up enabling Optimus to even consider killing Megatron in cold blood.

But in Bayverse, he has a team of mature, professional adults who, despite begging to utilize violence, listen to and obey Optimus even when that means leaving a fight/hostile situation disappointed. Even Crosshairs followed Optimus onto the back of a Dinobot. Yeah, he complained the whole way, but he still did as instructed.

No one in Bayverse was an enabler, and moreover, Optimus got to have those emotional moments, at least in Age of Extinction. What was best about that (as I said in my post defending Bayverse Optimus), is that Optimus actively sought out a reason to not abandon his morals. It was downplayed, but the conversation with Cade before he earns Grimlock's respect is Optimus looking at the abyss of no return he's staring at, and he's reaching behind him for someone he knows will pull him back from making a terrible mistake. Likewise, even as he's kinda OOC during the campfire scene and assault of the factory, he made sure no humans were killed.

And the righteously angry Autobots listened to his orders for no killing.

This is why I feel the moral struggle in TFP is inferior to Bayverse's take on it: the former is a man who's locked up emotions courtesy of being the only adult in a room of enablers coming close to throwing it all away because "no one cares, and what's the point now?", and a man who has put it all on the line, lost everything, and turns to a source of his suffering and pleads, "Give me a reason to stay good. Please, before I do something I'll regret."

I'd have loved episodes with Optimus, where he gets to unwind even slightly, and get to struggle with bottling everything up for the others' benefit. (Yeah, that scream was...low-key terrifying. Also maddening because the teens do nothing but gawk at dad justifiably crashing out from the stress.) I'm forever grateful that that line was cut because Elita One deserves better than just getting killed off or being a source of pain for Optimus, but...it would have been better, if only because we'd have avoided Arcee being hypocritical in how she nearly visited violence upon Ratchet. You are correct, Optimus never inflicts abuse on his team as opposed to Megatron, though I think in that scene, had it stayed...Optimus probably would have stiffened, grit his teeth obviously, maybe even visibly shake, and respond, "Old friend, your mind has been impaired by the synthetic energon. Your judgment for its use also brings up many concerns for your insight, and I cannot allow, or tolerate, such behavior from my chief medical officer. You are henceforth confined to base, and temporarily relieved of your duties, until I can trust you again with the health concerns of this team."

Yeah, they unfortunately were more concerned by foils.

Wait, for real? That's laughable, honestly. They may as well have called it the Arcee Show, because at least that would have been proper advertising. (You are also correct, though regarding Wheeljack I'd just like to add how the "always welcome" bit became meaningless/was revoked after "Hurt". I still despise how Ratchet got off for that, as well as how Optimus just stood back and let the others have their way.)

Seriously, what was wrong with just Cliffjumper? Not to mention, throwing in a past trauma makes us realize that her behavior post-Cliffjumper's death is basically the norm for her. Yes, she's justified in wanting vengeance for one or both, but to just pretend like Cliffjumper didn't exist after the five parter? I mean, she only mentioned him like twice on her own after that, right? (You are correct, Airachnid excels in psychological torture, and Arcee not even falling for the bait but nosediving for it...speaks badly about the Two-Wheeler. And let's not even talk about "Armada", that's just plain atrocious on so many levels.)

"Out of the Past" was a good episode - for Miko. Arcee....actually, Optimus should have been the one to talk things out with Miko. Arcee being there comes off as her being preachy about things, in a way (I'll have to rewatch it to be sure), because it's all about Arcee's struggles rather than Miko's. And I mean, Miko just came back and saw her partner getting defibrillators put on him. Optimus should have talked to her, because then 1 they'd both hash out their feelings of how to handle this blow, and 2 they'd both benefit from a chat, and it wouldn't feel like it was Arcee's spotlight episode (again.)

Honestly, I wish we could have gotten more out of Airachnid, too - and I wish we could have heard her playing off of Peter Cullen. I mean, Gina Torres is a talented/experienced VA, and she could keep pace with Frank Welker. Imagine if Optimus had an episode (or three) where he and Airachnid are duking it out. My mind would have blown from the awesomeness (you make excellent observations and, while the "making species endangered" I feel is a tad much, that certainly adds on to her creep factor.)

Exactly! Bulkhead had enough people hanging around him to make his later background position less glaring, + give the others (Wheeljack and Miko) chances to shine. Speaking of, what drives me mad is how we never learn why Bulkhead and Breakdown were beefing. I used to imagine it was "buddies pre-war chose opposite sides and took it personally", but that's still kinda weak.

Heck yeah, he was done dirty. And really, I can't argue anymore that Bulkhead should have died. Not only would it have made their claims of "we're serious about killing characters" more genuine, it would have done better for everyone else's development. I think you're right about Breakdown getting more development (excellent point about them copping out of giving Airachnid more depth - I am once again reminded of TFOne), and thank you! I'm glad you liked those ideas. I feel that would have been better, though given the writers' track record, I don't think I'd trust them to treat Smokescreen that well. But at least we can imagine better!

Oh. I think I vaguely recall that - though I'd also call that a superficial foil (golly jumpings banana splits, they really were obsessed with foils if that was their idea of an "official" foil for Bee.) Yeah, I always made the KO vs Ratchet connection, so them claiming otherwise....that's a load.

That's it: if it's done well, it's great, but when two thirds of your cast become irrelevant courtesy of their foils disappearing, that's a bad sign.

Also -

#I said this before but Flamewar would've made a better rival/foil to Arcee#Mostly because she has a lot going on for her outside of her being a foil/rival to Arcee + she is severely underutilized/underrated#But yeah I don't think everyone should get a foil/rival because it genuinely gets to a point#Like Bumblebee and Knockout for example#Arcee and Bulkhead had Metal Attraction as their “grudge fight” episode against Airachnid and Breakdown + even Miko pointed that out#Additionally those four have confirmed “history” with their respective foils/rivals and WOULD come at each other when there's an opportunit#Having a similar episode made specifically for Bee and KO would've solidified their rivalry/the fact that KO is Bee's foil imho#To me their little skirmishes was more of a “they're both present at the same time” kind of situation rather than them genuinely having bee#KO aside it would've been interesting to see Dreadwing being the one beefing with Bumblebee since he's the one that killed Skyquake#Not only does it differ from the usual “they share the same frame types” formula for the Arcee-Airachnid and Bulkhead-Breakdown foil/rivalr#Because Dreadwing has a solid reason for going after Bumblebee + if Arcee and Wheeljack are allowed to seek revenge then why not him?#But all in all more focus should've been placed on Optimus and Megatron's relationship and it's a bit silly how this is often sidelined#Once again it really makes you wonder how differently things could've turned out without all those issues...in another universe I guess

Yes! Arcee and Flamewar should have had knockdown, drag-out catfights, especially since then Arcee would have time to be independent of past trauma, and then we'd finally get Flamewar onto the screen. Seriously, I'd love to have that nasty femme on screen, and I detest how she's just been left in the background.

I remember @kzele pointing out first that Dreadwing should've been gunning for Bee, and that rivalry would have been awesome. I guess since Bee was nothing but a mute, though, that they felt they couldn't get much out of him (and probably didn't want to address that Bee flipping disemboweled a dude.) And why all the physical resemblances for foils? Come on people, get creative!

Thanks for the reblog! If you have anything else to talk about (or that I missed), come on into my ask-box anytime!

[jazzimena]

You raised a lot of great points, Blade! A lot of which made me think about the many missed opportunities that Prime could’ve used…and I want to touch more on that. I’m in a pretty ranty mood, and I hope it’s okay!

It’s baffling that Optimus never once got his own episode (Nemesis Prime and Triangulation wasn’t even character-centiric), but it was an even bigger crime that the Orion Pax arc never did that. We could’ve gotten more backstory on Optimus’/Orion’s past with Megatronus via a/some much–needed flashback episode(s), but instead, we got unequally distributed character–centric episodes.

Frustrations aside…I can’t speak on Bayverse (I need to rewatch it), but I agree with your points. Team Prime enabling one another’s bad behavior (hypocrisy, inaction, insubordination, refusing treatment to a wounded ally, etc.) is both unfortunate yet unsurprising. Plus, given how borderline toxic they can be to one another, especially those not within their “circle” (read: them “ganging up” on Wheeljack and Smokescreen), it’s often difficult for me to view them as a close–knit “family” that cares about one another. I’d rather have them depicted as a semi–dysfunctional family, but it seems that the writers insist you see them as “perfect”.

It also doesn’t help there’s this “rift” between Optimus and his own team.

In the show, we see the other OG members getting comforted and assured by Optimus that what they “did” (Arcee in Partners; Ratchet in Stronger, Faster; Bumblebee in Operation Bumblebee) was “justified”, and that they didn’t mess up big time. But you know what we didn’t see? The team extending the same courtesy to Optimus.

Yes, Optimus is someone who rarely reaches out and often turn down offers for unwinding…which begs the question why we never see anyone even trying to do so. To me, this makes Team Prime’s “family” status questionable, especially since Optimus still has to bottle up his emotions around them. What’s even worse is that Nemesis Prime demonstrates how easy it is to make them turn against Optimus! Have they forgotten who reassured and comforted them? So much for “family”.

This is also why Arcee’s “Primes don’t party” line is concerning, because not only does it suggest that Optimus is 100% incapable of unwinding, but it also highlights how everyone just had this “oh well” attitude towards that. Yeah, they probably tried…but seeing this distance between Optimus and his own team (and how they quickly antagonized him), despite the show endorsing them as a “family”, is just sad.

Also, the show’s insistence to prevent Optimus from snuffing Megatron resembles Arcee’s situation with Airachnid, even if Optimus’ reluctance is more understandable since we did see his inner turmoil (in contrast, something similar does not work for the Arcee–Airachnid rivalry, making its “conclusion” all the more baffling). Plus, I do think Optimus would’vesnuffed Megatron in Crossfire had the ‘cons not arrived.

Now that you mentioned it, the OG members (Arcee, Bulkhead, and Ratchet specifically) were very against giving second chances to Megatron. But still...since it’s implied that Arcee told the team that she shot a comatose Megatron, it would’ve been funny to see Bulkhead exclaiming “You missed?!” while Ratchet quietly losing his mind. (You know, Optimus aside…the writers seem to vehemently refuse having Megatron stay dead, as shown by the many times he was “resurrected”, especially in Predacons Rising…).

So, regarding Elita, it goes without saying that she deserves way better than simply being Optimus’ “dead partner” (I like to think she’s alive), because it gets to a point. But speaking of “dead partners”, Arcee really didn’t hesitate, huh? Yes, Ratchet was very wrong, but did you see how quickly she went for him?

Anyways, I think a way to up the ante in Stronger, Faster would be to have Ratchet mention the names of many fallen Autobots while blaming and insulting Optimus for it. Not only does it emphasize just how much Ratchet did not hold back, but it’d also highlight the immense loss the Autobots suffered (rather than only mentioning Cliffjumper). Also, that dialogue you wrote…Ratchet, I’d beg for forgiveness if I were you.

Now onto the “foils”.

The show’s issue with just Cliffjumper is that his death was intended to be the “gotcha!” moment that’d kickstart Arcee’s “vengeance” towards Starscream. But at the same time, there’s Airachnid. Airachnid is a sadistic predator that has this sick and twisted obsession with going after certain “preys” due to how “fun” it’d be for her to psychologically/physically torture them. Here, Arcee becomes her “prey” due to how “quick and stealthy” she is. Airachnid wants the thrill of the chase.

That is a good set up for their hostilities…until, the writers decided to copy paste the “dead partner” route by having Airachnid snuff Tailgate. Seriously, why not make Arcee’s revenge stemming from her goal to never let anyone else experience the same horrors as she did? Is “dead partners” really the only way to make Arcee beef with anyone? Not only that, but Airachnid in particular also gets the short end of the stick since she couldn’t exist as her own character outside of being Arcee’s rival/arch nemesis. I really wished we had gotten more of her, and I would’ve loved to see her fight other characters. That said, seeing her fight Optimus would’ve been awesome!

Moving on, now that you mentioned it…while I enjoyed Out of the Past, I…also felt that the episode focused more on Arcee’s struggles than Miko’s own. It would’ve been better if, say, it was Arcee that first asked Miko about her fond memories/stories of Bulkhead before having her open up about Cliffjumper. Though, I would’ve preferred to see this talk occurring between Arcee and Jack instead under different circumstances…because, let’s be real, in some real–life cases, I…don’t think talking about yourself when another person’s going through it is the best course of action. (Plus, the episode’s implication that Arcee had “made peace” becomes questionable when you consider her sarcastic quip on losing “two seasoned partners” towards Smokescreen’s apology in Alpha Omega. I don’t know about you, but bringing up your late partners as a “gotcha!” towards someone apologizing to you is really distasteful, Arcee…).

Negativity aside…having Optimus comfort Miko would’ve been amazing! If the show truly knew Miko, then they’d know that she’d have the initiative to get to know Optimus and make him unwind! (like how she immediately approached Bulkhead in Darkness Rising)

Given how eager and persistent, yet also kind–hearted and emotionally intelligent she is (how looked out for Bulkhead Post–Hurt), she’d definitely pull it off! Inspired by your post and some reblogs, I feel Optimus would even see a bit of Megatronus in her (or even his rebellious younger self), and that’d definitely work in Miko’s favor! Eventually, to everyone’s surprise…they’d come to see Optimus sharing tales of Cybertron to an eager Miko, and on some days, they’d FIND him quietly watching a monster truck show with Miko as she chatters on.  

This would’ve been a great basis to their heart–to–heart! Bonus points if it was Miko that was entrusted with the key to Vector Sigma (because I never got the impression that Jack had “Prime–like” qualities). All in all, this scenario with Optimus and Miko would show how, despite the immense stress and pressure he’s in…Optimus will always have time for his family and would genuinely open up/unwind to those that truly care.

Actually, you’re not alone! Bulkhead and Breakdown being pre–war buddies make a lot of sense! We see how the two cooperate really well with one another (almost in sync) once they set aside their beef in Operation Breakdown. Plus, like I said, Breakdown’s the most Autobot–like Decepticon. I’m willing to bet that his decision to join the ‘cons caused the initial fallout between the two (plus, unlike other Decepticons…Breakdown’s digits/fingers aren’t sharp, making me think he was once a construction worker along with Bulkhead).

Nice to know that someone else thought of that, because a Bumblebee–Dreadwing rivalry would’ve honestly been awesome! I also think that Bee needs a foil/rival so that we can actually get more of him. If they ever fought, I’d imagine it being like Bee’s fight with Blitzwing. Though, do not think Dreadwing would be snuffed (his brother’s death not only pushed him to train himself/anticipate the Scout’s movements, but to also reminds himself why he’s doing this; to avenge his brother, Skyquake). Bumblebee better watch out.

So, this turned out longer than anticipated. The gears were really turning in my head! Please feel free to reply/reblog whenever, and i hope this week treats you well :)

[blade-liger-4ever]

Thanks! I'm glad to hear I did something good! No worries, sometimes a good show needs to be ranted over when it passed up golden opportunities for even more awesome content.

Now that you mention it, the "Orion Pax" arc was criminal for showing Optimus at like, three different points per episode, if we're lucky. They could have had (and should have shown) Optimus asking questions about how things have changed, why Megatron's title is "lord" now, and the manpower involved in hunting down a scant few Autobots (oh gosh, I just had visions of Optimus doing a rapid-fire questioning of things in the vein of Miko - that would have been awesome!) Seriously, Optimus is the leader, he needs to have more attention given to him.

Thank you, that means a lot! I'd have to watch the films in their entirety again myself, but I had the realization the other day that the Bayverse cast really does just...handle crap that's thrown at them better than Team Prime does. That's a good point, and now that you mention it, Team Prime comes off as a toxic family in many ways (side note, but if the family dynamic had been handled similarly to that of Star Wars Rebels' found family theme, then it wouldn't be so egregious. Heck, if they went that route for the show, then Team Prime being a "family" would actually be far truer than the show paints it to be.) What's amazing to me is that the main writers/"brains" behind TFP were responsible for the Bayverse films' scripts, or the initial ones anyway, and I have to ask myself: Was Bay really the problem there, at least outside of the human cast? (Also their "ganging up" on much needed fresh troops simply because they "don't catch on fast enough" or are "mavericks" is infuriating due to their history of the exact same, at least in their renegade behavior.)

Holy. Crap.

It's a literal "all take and no give" situation. Optimus is the giver who receives nothing in return, while the others take from him without giving it back. It's almost like they're parasitical in their relationship with Optimus, not made better by the fact that they'll so readily pull iron on him, as you pointed out. Gosh, how did we all view this show as perfect for so long with the glaring flaws....?

See, on the one hand, it "infers" that Primes aren't supposed to be seen being what amounts to party animals, but at the same time....when the resident drama queen kid is the one to ask where your leader is out of concern, and is met with casual indifference.... Houston, we have a problem. Now that you put it that way, it's sad enough that you'd have to laugh over it to keep from crying, because Optimus is the one who's been suffering the most. No, he won't ever say it, or even think it, but he's been forced to lead in a war he never wanted, lives with the fact that thousands have died on his behalf, wonders if there was ever any good in his best friend turned mass murderer, and is constantly doubting his choices (which is NOT made better by how Team Prime always questions his decisions. Refresh my memory, how is that a healthy family dynamic?)

Oooo, good point - they really have a problem with this and all their beloved foils (don't forget, Bulkhead was happily going to let Breakdown get dissected while still alive until Miko intervened. Annoying as the show can be now, gotta love how she always advocates for an Autobot's life to stay online - yes I included Breakdown there, no I won't take it back.) He probably would have, which is why I prefer Bayverse's treatment of the moral dilemma: he still refused on his own to not kill out of revenge, whereas TFP throws Plot Armor in to keep Optimus from killing Megatron.

They were actually pretty against it for all the Decepticons. Ratchet wanted to chop up Megatron, Bulkhead kept begging for Megatron to die (see above for his thoughts on poor Breakdown), and Arcee - well, that buttload of evidence speaks for itself. (Lol, that would have been funny - sad too, because then there's more emotional damage Optimus has to swallow....might have led to Miko or Fowler calling them out on it, though.) That's a good point, they really don't like the idea of killing off Megatron. I mean it works in the first season - mostly, at least - but after that? You could at least keep it canon he's dead after the S3 finale, people.

Oh thank you! She deserves so much more than that (I, too, imagine her as alive - which is technically canon!) Oof, yeah. Arcee's preaching about "stronger as a team" and whatnot becomes very hypocritical with how she was gonna beat up Ratchet so quickly. Sheesh, this is why she's getting dialed down in my main AU; she needs development still, but golly is she otherwise such a contradiction that I need to reel it in for any character development to stick.

Oh yeah, that'd have been better - and if you'd wanted to truly have driven home how deeply it hurt Optimus, have the last name be Dion, or even if you wanted to keep a "lost Lenore" deal with Optimus while teasing us if Elita is alive or not, throw in Ariel at the end and then see Optimus stiffen as everything he thought he knew about one of his best buds comes into question (heh, thanks - I would be too. Yeah, I felt Optimus should be allowed to realize that maybe Ratchet's input isn't as invaluable as he thought - I mean, with how Ratchet's such an enabler himself, there comes a point where the person being taken advantage of, even if he's subconsciously taking advantage of another, needs to take a step back and set some boundaries.)

Speaking of how unfair it is for Elita to be Optimus' "dead partner" for personal woe, it's equally unfair that Cliffjumper's whole existence was just for that. But since the genders are reversed this time, I guess most people are willing to let it slide. Yup, yup, yup! That is exactly what Airachnid is all about, and the more challenging her "prey", the more "fun" she's gonna have.

Which also makes the "personal" stake in it for Arcee...confusing. You could have simply had her traumatized by her first encounter with Airachnid, and she falls for Airachnid's schemes out of desperation to protect others from her sadism (which, coincidentally, would have given credence to her informed "maternal/compassionate" role on the team.) But instead, Arcee is apparently so proud that the only reason she'll consider you a worthy target is if you take away someone she personally held dear. I also wish Airachnid had been better thought out enough that she could be independent of Arcee's trauma nonsense, especially since she climbed the ranks among the 'Cons as fast as she did. And yes, her vs Optimus is a match up we were denied! Seriously, it would be hunter versus warrior, cunning versus wisdom, and that would have been beautiful to see (speaking of, you're giving me confidence to make another thought post I had in mind regarding certain questionable choices with spider-themed Decepticons from the era of 2007-2013, so you may want to stay tuned for that if I decide to give it a go after all.)

Yeah, it's a fun episode for the action on Cybertron, but otherwise it really comes off as Arcee going "oh look at me, I've suffered so much" to a girl who is quite literally going through the most traumatic experience of her life. You don't do that to someone who is in shock like that, especially since you still don't know for sure if the object of the trauma is gonna pull through or not. (I just thought of this earlier, but did Arcee ever...tell Jack about either of her partners? Like, she just brushed it all off after Airachnid's appearance, and as far as we know, his only knowledge of Cliffjumper comes without the guy even being named in "Darkness Rising, Pt 5".) See, that's what's annoying: Smokescreen took the genuine steps to apologize, and showed that there was no ego involved as opposed to Arcee's claims, yet rather than be satisfied with it, Arcee just says "I already lost two partners, I don't need a rookie on my scorecard."

I'm sorry, since when were you fond of the guy enough to even deign to consider him a "new" partner? Are you that busy naval gazing that you 1 can't acknowledge and accept his apology, and 2 so intent on keeping him outside your little circle that you'll sooner kick him out with a snide remark like that than do - literally anything else?

Oops, I made this about Smokescreen, heh. But yeah, I agree, so much for her moving on...

Yes! Miko would have absolutely have reached out to Optimus, especially since he had to have been pacing or something as they waited for word on Bulkhead's health.

Oh girl, you just melted my heart! That would have been great! And funny, to see everyone flabbergasted over the development...

You're the second or third person I've seen suggest Miko as the holder of the Key to Vector Sigma, and that is honestly awesome the more I think about it! And definitely makes more sense than Jack - kid's got no spine, and to be "Prime-like" requires backbone and guts, both of which Miko has been blessed with to a staggering degree. And yes! That would have been beautiful and awesome, and in addition to giving her Ironhide for a partner, I am now totally gonna figure out a way to have her bounce between him and Optimus (it won't be that much of a stretch, tbh. They go back a ways, and I can see Ironhide coming up to Optimus when he's emotionally in a bad spot and basically just tossing Miko at him like "Woe, Miko be upon ye." XD XD XD)

Oh sweet! That's cool! Yeah, the "Operation: Breakdown" sequence helped me come to that conclusion, at least I think it did. Breakdown's definitely the most Autobot-like Decepticon, and given the amount of 'Cons becoming 'Bots we've had in the franchise, it's a crying shame we were denied that with Breakdown. Funny you should mention that, because when I was doing research, I found out that Breakdown used to work on a dam. So, you're not far off the mark, and I actually utilized that for an old idea where he and Ironhide had history in one of my early rewrites.

Indeed, especially since of all the background foils, Bee vs Dreadwing is the only one that makes sense from a plot standpoint (yes, aesthetically it's pleasing to have polar opposites, but there was no relevancy to the overarching story with Arcee vs Airachnid and Bulkhead vs Breakdown, though you could have swung it with the latter for Breakdown's eventual turn.) Because truly, if I were in Dreadwing's place, I'd ask for the name of the killer and hunt him down, not just grab any Autobot in sight for the kill. That is a very good idea for how it'd go down and you reminded me of how Blitzwing's getting development and his lost redemption arc in my AU as well, and YES, Dreadwing would not have his Spark snuffed out. He's crafty, more experienced, and more familiar with a hunt than Bee is. Scout's gotta stay on his toes!

No worries, and I hope the week treats you well, too. But before that -

#Just a bit of addition-but I've always found it OOC for Miko in particular to point her finger at Optimus in Nemesis Prime#This was the same gal who THREATENED Megatron and is VERY vocal with remaining on the the Autobots' side#Let's also not forget how she FIRMLY decided to stay with the bots both in Darkness Rising and when June was about to make her leave#I firmly believe it was an implicit attempt to “maintain” the connection between Jack and Optimus Post-Orion Pax#Especially since he was the ONLY human who BELIEVED Optimus#But now that I think about it-there was no reason for Fowler and Raf to be SUSPICIOUS of Optimus#ESPECIALLY Fowler since he's known the bots AND Optimus for far longer than the kids#And did Raf forget about the small moments he shared with Optimus in Scrapheap-the S1 finale-and the ending to the Orion Pax arc???#I'm getting a bit out of topic but i really dislike the special treatment Jack's getting BY THE SHOW#Anyways Miko would have been able to tear down Optimus' walls (just as she did Bulkhead's) via her own ways and I am 100% down for it

Oh heck yeah, and I wouldn't be surprised. They had to keep Jack relevant to a degree in order to have an excuse (or ten) to use Arcee non-stop, while I guess the initial whiners against Miko would have had a hissy fit if she'd gotten the Key (I also hate how much attention Jack consumed from the show's cast.) And really, what's with having Fowler or Raf turn on Optimus like that? Could they really not sell the Nemesis Prime arc that well, or were they just desperate?

Seriously, I gotta consider some Optimus and Miko content now. That'd be beautiful - though I also confess I can see Flint opening up to him a tad bit, too.

Let me know if I missed anything, and I hope to have you here or in my askbox again some time!

[brightrednight]

Okay I'm late to the party but I'm still mad because the best time for Optimus to demonstrate a lot of personality is when he's being stressed in unusual ways, so even just a tiny scene would've been better than what we got.

like, consider: it's mid-s2 and Optimus is decoding the Iacon database.

the kids get off from school and are promptly warned that Optimus is acting a bit weird, don't mention it, don't even look at him for too long, just stay out of his way (like how we do with athletes when they're playing a good game, y'know?)

and we get to the base, and MUSIC IS BLARING SO FUCKING LOUD. (Whatever genre you think he'd like best, but I default to acid punk just bc Orion spent too much time in Kaon's red light district while he and Megatronus were building the revolution.)

Optimus is sitting in the weirdest position imaginable (because librarian!) and he's using a tablet as a calculator and looking increasingly frustrated because nothing is balancing the way it should.

Someone, let's go with Jack because really he should not always be the writer's pet, tries to turn off the music, and everyone immediately collectively winces.

Optimus, visibly irritated, not looking away from the tablet: are you the one currently decoding the database that's been leading us to weapons of mass destruction? Jack: uh. no. Optimus: then you don't get to pick the music. Jack: sorry. Optimus: Jack: Optimus: Turn it back on. Jack: -oh, right.

There's just something so nice about the team having to work around Optimus for once and not the other way around? (Yet another way Optimus and Megatron foil each other but also that sounds exhausting.)

[blade-liger-4ever]

See, THIS would have been incredible! Heck, I can even hear Peter Cullen saying those lines!

(Can I ask what you mean by "acid punk"? I'm unfamiliar with it, and I can see Optimus using that as a way of just zeroing in on something and tuning out absolutely EVERY background sound.)

[brightrednight]

That's a song in the acid punk style. It's esoteric, and Miko would love it, but yeah i don't think anyone else really would.

But I did think of another scene!

Same scenario, where he's decoding the database and looking increasingly irritated that nothing is balancing right, when:

Raf: Didn't you say decoding the database is mostly just math? Maybe I could help. Optimus: ........ The offer is much appreciated. However, this level of math is beyond what your species has already managed to understand about the universe, and I fear even someone as prodigious as you would scarcely be able to understand why two plus two sometimes equals to thirty-five. Raf: Oh, yeah, that sounds hard. Optimus: It has literally driven people insane before. Ratchet: Don't joke about that. Optimus: I was not.

[blade-liger-4ever]

How Persistent Use of Foils Ruined the Characterization of Optimus' Subordinates in Prime

Look, despite my posts taking on the problematic writing choices of TFP (including this one), I do love the show. It helped draw me further into the Transformers lore and universe, and taught me a decent bit about writing.

The thing is, it wasn't perfect like I used to believe it was. Furthermore, as I look back on the show, I realize that there were poor writing choices that lay totally at the writers' feet and not at Hasbro's, though they bear much of the burden nonetheless.

With these posts - or ones like this one, at least - I think I'm merely trying to both come to terms with and elaborate on the worse choices TFP made in order to get a better idea of how to write not just for myself, but for others.

Now, without further ado, let's get into this.

Optimus' rivalry with - and antithesis in - Megatron is not just a given due to them being the leaders of their respective factions, but has been a staple of the Transformers franchise since 1984. This is because they represent the best and worst of their homeworld, and as such it is intrinsically necessary to have them standing as mirrors of what the other could have become if they had made different choices. It works beautifully, and seeing them so radically different while adding in the newer addition of a failed friendship between the two before the Autobots and Decepticons formed is grounds for a slew of emotional moments with Optimus, a downplayed version of such feelings with Megatron, or even the occasional outburst when they clash on Earth.

But the writers, due to their professed love of Arcee and becoming enamored of the idea of foils, struck their writing in its Achilles' Heel by giving two to three characters a foil: Arcee vs Airachnid, Bulkhead vs Breakdown, and even Ratchet vs Knock Out, though this last one was more superficial.

Aside from taking the focus away from Optimus when his name is literally the title of the series, the Arcee vs Airachnid fixation actually stunts Arcee's arc while propelling Airachnid out of the shadow of simply being Arcee's nemesis.

See, throughout the series, Arcee gets consumed by her lust for revenge over Airachnid to the point that not only do her supposed "learning experiences" from each episode become moot every time the latter returns, Arcee is actually the one who cannot and will not move on from the wrongs Airachnid has done to her. Her whole existence revolves around killing Airachnid, to get even for the Arachnicon ruining her relationships/killing her partners, and the only reason this cancerous plot tumor is done away with is because the writers locked Airachnid up and - this is the important part - Arcee fades into obscurity from the plot.

Name one episode where she got the spotlight after "Armada" when Airachnid was done away with. It's not there, because she became irrelevant once the source of her relevancy disappeared. Because honestly, Arcee had no purpose in the show after the fact beyond additional fighters and abusing the heck out of Smokescreen.

But when you look at Airachnid, her initial appearance as the ghost of Arcee's past is quickly done away with by how quickly she climbs the Decepticon ranks.

Once brought back to the Nemesis with Breakdown, Airachnid proves her worth as a commanding officer and even takes Starscream's role as both Megatron's second-in-command and scheming #2. I kid you not, the way she moves up the chain of command and begins turning her new situation (and Megatron's brief absence) to her advantage make her a more intimidating and memorable character than just being "Arcee's foil". Now, to work her in elsewhere, you'd have to do something other than introducing her as Arcee or whomever else's archenemy/source of PTSD, but otherwise? The femme stands on her own legs just fine without being defined by Arcee, at least after her solo act, but even that solo act shows us how flexible and adaptive a character Airachnid is.

She earns her place as a fresh new character begging to be used, while Arcee ends up rotting in the past with how Airachnid, living rent free in her head, dictates her whole personality.

With Bulkhead and Breakdown, it's marginally better. Despite only knowing they "have a history" (and that Breakdown never actually does anything worse than throw a pillar at Miko when he knew Bulkhead would dive between the two), it's fairly evenhanded in how Breakdown's existence isn't dependent upon Bulkhead, and for his part, Bulkhead can have focuses outside of Breakdown.

However, Bulkhead still suffers for it.

Similar to the prior example, Bulkhead's relevancy ends up taking a turn for the worse when Breakdown is unjustly killed off. Yes, he has an arc with how he feels useless as he's healing and Smokescreen's racking up an impressive record with little struggle, but when that's done?

Bulkhead fades into the background.

And Breakdown shines forward.

From the beginning, Breakdown is allowed to have a life outside of being Bulkhead's rival. He's shown to be a loyal soldier to Megatron, has a kind streak that only the Vehicons really witness, and is buddy-buddy enough with Knock Out that he won't backhand the doctor into a wall for taking his attention away from fixing Megatron's comatose frame. Additionally, Breakdown was even getting a redemption arc that, for some reason I'll never fathom, was nixed "for budget cuts". And frankly?

Bulkhead should have been the one who died.

We already saw that he ended up serving no purpose after Breakdown's untimely demise, and while Miko's development flourished thanks to his (second) near death experience, you could have gotten much more if he bit the bullet instead of Breakdown.

Imagine, for a moment. Dreadwing's bomb kills Bulkhead in the end, and Breakdown grapples with the fact that not only is his old enemy gone courtesy of a newcomer, but it was for vengeance. Sure, the 'Bots did horrible by Skyquake, but Bulkhead had nothing to do with that. And wait, if he's willing to go that far even by accident, what odds do I stand if I end up between him and one of the 'Bots? And Lord Megatron's alright with this - not just the death of a 'Bot, but the method....

Primus, what did I sign up for?!

This way, you could have opened up three new storylines: Wheeljack struggling with going on suicide runs to avenge his best friend, Miko hot on his heels, and Breakdown cutting ties with the Decepticons to help the Autobots. And during this time, Wheeljack realizes that he's now got Miko to care for, and thus recognize the need to get himself under control as Miko is blindsided by the reality of the War/has her bubble of "everything's fine, everything's going to be fine" broken, and matures into the warrior we see in S3. Breakdown's joining would have both Wheeljack and Miko vehemently against him, but in time they'd warm up to Breakdown, especially if/when he goes out of his way to protect one or both. And when Smokescreen joins, Breakdown slowly drifts toward the Elite Guardsman because he knows how it feels to be treated like an outcast while Wheeljack ends up noticing the rookie's talents and backing him up against the others. Miko, having just lost one partner, is gonna cling to not just Wheeljack, but Breakdown because of how high on the totem poll for death he is with the 'Cons while she'll read Arcee the riot act for being two-faced over their need for fresh troops, yet treating Smokescreen like trash.

I won't say much on these two, but they were superficial foils to each other: one old, stuck in his ways, perpetually grumpy and unconcerned for his appearances, while the other is young, vain, highly adaptable/quick to break the Hippocratic oath and obsessed with his looks. Thankfully, we were spared seeing Ratchet and Knock Out going hammer and tongs throughout the series, with only the occasional confrontation to reinforce the stark contrast between them. Thus, from a visual standpoint, Ratchet and Knock Out acting as foils works because it's a situational difference in their professions.

Regardless, the writing suffered by a desire for an unlimited number of character foils, and for this, not only did the Autobot cast suffer irrelevancy by this choice, but the character growth we were teased with for Breakdown and Airachnid, and even the possible arcs we could have had for them, were thrown in the garbage bin simply because they were "disposable" Decepticons.

If you got this far, thanks for reading. And if this helped you, please reconsider the use of foils in your stories. It's best not to get caught in the traps that such an idea can hide.

Roll out, Autobots!

[jazzimena]

Interesting read, Blade!

As much as I love Prime, just like you and many others, a lot of the show’s issues just become more apparent as you grow older.

With that said, I completely agree that there should’ve been more focus on Optimus and Megatron’s relationship. Yes, you could find more of their interactions as Orion Pax and Megatronus in the novels, but it was a missed opportunity to not include more of their history in the show.

Though, I’d say that their fight scenes and dialogues do make up for it, since you can feel their centuries–long animosity. I also liked Optimus’ transition from considering Megatron’s possible redemption to being downright unforgiving...made me wish we had more Optimus–centric episodes (from his POV). Yes, he is stoic, but I want to know his thoughts on Megatron, the war, Team Prime, the kids/humanity, etc. I want to see him doubting his decisions, how tired he must be from this never–ending war, and how, despite everything, he forces himself to be strong for his team.

That’s why I also would’ve liked to see him lose his cool (ex. his frustrated scream when Starscream snagged all the Omega Keys) more often, since it shows that he’s not 100% unaffected by everything. I think one of the earlier drafts for Stronger, Faster was going to have Optimus punch Ratchet for bringing up Elita–1, but while I don’t think TFP Optimus would ever punch Ratchet or any other Autobot–what differentiates him and Megatron is that Megatron wouldn’t hesitate to strike or shoot anyone, including Decepticons–I would’ve loved to see him, say, reprimand Ratchet in a restrained yet visibly upset manner.

But as you said, it seems the writers were more interested to introduce more foils.

Now that you mentioned it, someone once said that the Prime in Transformers: Prime actually refers to Team Prime. While an interesting perspective, to me, it becomes questionable when you consider the many issues/inconsistencies within OG Team Prime’s own dynamics and characterization that was conveniently pushed aside by the writers (ex. how the team said that Wheeljack’s always welcomed to return and even introduced the concept of family to Ultra Magnus before accepting him, yet never extended the same courtesy to Smokescreen…as well as the many cases of insubordination and underlying hypocrisy). But hey, maybe that’s just me.

With that said, Arcee should’ve only had one partner, because to me, the way her hatred towards Airachnid trumped her hatred towards Starscream–despite him being the one who recently snuffed Cliffjumper–felt really off (though, giving her two revenge arcs would be too much). While Arcee was justified to want revenge after witnessing Tailgate’s murder right in front of her optics, what she doesn’t realize is that that’s exactly what Airachnid wants. Airachnid revels in psychological torture, and she knows Arcee will never stop pursuing her…that’s why the “ending” to their “rivalry” was very anti–climactic (similar to Bulkhead and Breakdown’s, where the latter’s conveniently “taken out”).

Honestly, I did feel that the writers struggled with what to do with Arcee Post–Armada, but even so, she did become the focus in Out of the Past (notice how she’s the only Autobot that got a flashback episode?). This episode’s one of my favorites because it shows Arcee’s more caring and warm side…but I just wished she didn’t make her compassion conditional. As you may know, her reading the riot act on Smokescreen when she’s so compassionate to Miko and Wheeljack left a bitter taste in my mouth. To me, it’s a poorly executed attempt at trying to make Arcee relevant/stand out (despite it highlighting the extent of her hypocrisy) in Airachnid’s absence.

Speaking of Airachnid, I wished she had more screentime. “Rivalry” aside, she’s a cunning and charismatic Decepticon with the way she quickly earned Megatron’s trust and rose up the Decepticon ranks, unafraid to take on the mantle of leader via quiet intimidation. I just wished we saw more of her beyond her rivalry with Arcee, especially her backstory in “collecting endangered species”, her connections with the insecticons, and how scary she must’ve been back in Cybertron (look, I’m just saying that if she’s capable of wiping out entire species, then it’s safe to assume that she probably had a high Autobot kill count during the war).

Now, Bulkhead and Breakdown’s beef was an actual, genuine, rivalry. Though, they could’ve been more interesting had the show explained how and why they initially butted heads. Was Breakdown an ex–Autobot/part of the wreckers? If so, did something happen that caused the two to have a falling out? Who knows. But to me, Bulkhead fading into the background Post–Human Factor didn’t feel as drastic or as sudden as it was for Arcee Post–Armada, since I feel that the show didn’t actively shine the spotlight on him (no offense to his fans) as often as they did Arcee (due to the many Arcee–centric episodes + the fact she’s basically the MC in the first few episodes). Though, it does help that he has close ties with ever–boisterous Miko and his long–time Wrecker buddy, Wheeljack, often making for a fun and enjoyable dynamic.

Now, Breakdown was done dirty by his sudden demise, especially when it was due to “budget cuts”. Though, unlike Airachnid whose sole purpose was to be Arcee’s “rival” (which I think is just an excuse to not give her more depth), Breakdown had a lot going on for him. No offense to Bulkhead fans, but I’ve seen some people saying that he should’ve died (as a way for Prime to maintain/salvage its “dark” atmosphere after Cliffjumper’s death). But that aside, the three new storylines you made were awesome! Just imagining Breakdown, Miko, Smokescreen, and Wheeljack forming their own Wrecker Quartet is something I’d love to see. You know, sometimes I can’t help but feel that the writers put more character depth into Breakdown instead of one of their main characters (which is unsurprising why folks prefer Animated Bulkhead).

On to Ratchet and Knockout…do you know that Knockout is actually Bumblebee’s foil? Maybe it’s just me, but I didn’t really feel any solid “rivalry” between the two aside from the skirmishes they had (Speed Metal, Operation: Bumblebee, Tunnel Vision, Hard Knocks). If anything, I thought that Knockout was either Ratchet or Smokescreen’s (in terms of loyalty, alt–mode choice, and even personality–wise) foil, which was why it was surprising to know that wasn’t the case.

But now that you’ve pointed it out, it does feel like the writers insist that every Autobot has a foil/rival. It’s not a problem when executed correctly, but boy does it say something when, right after 2/3 of these foils were conveniently taken out of the picture (sudden death and sent to Cybertron’s moon), your MCs struggle to define/act for themselves in their absence.

Really makes you wonder if things would've ended differently if Prime wasn't plagued by budget cuts, time constraints, and constant pressure...

[blade-liger-4ever]

Thanks, Jazzi!

Yeah, it's something where, the more you look back on it, TFP almost feels like an embarrassing teen phase with how many flaws begin to crop up.

Thank you! Seriously, what was the problem with focusing on them/Optimus? He couldn't even get an episode to himself; it's like the writers were afraid of having him open up for longer than ten seconds. Maybe that's because of all the burdens he's been shouldering would end up taking the focus away from Arcee, but whatever at this point (the problem with the novels is that not everyone at the time was gonna make the jump between cartoon and reading. I mean, I'd never heard of Exodus or Exiles until...two years after TFP ended? At least promote the books better.)

See, the dialogue is good, but it's only a few scraps to cling to otherwise. And, the more I consider it....Bayverse handled Optimus' moral dilemma better.

Hear me out.

One of the problems I loosely touched on in the original post and elsewhere is that, Optimus' team in TFP are basically self-absorbed teenagers, which means that 1 they're enabling each other's bad behavior, and 2 Optimus has to bottle up his emotions because no one else gives a dang about what he's going through. Which, by extension, is the poor reason for his tunnel vision every time he has Megatron at his mercy post S1.

The problem here? The show bends over backwards to keep Optimus from committing a crime (killing Megatron out of hatred rather than the need to save billions of lives.) Not to mention, with the way Bulkhead and the others constantly urge him to murder Megatron, the characters end up enabling Optimus to even consider killing Megatron in cold blood.

But in Bayverse, he has a team of mature, professional adults who, despite begging to utilize violence, listen to and obey Optimus even when that means leaving a fight/hostile situation disappointed. Even Crosshairs followed Optimus onto the back of a Dinobot. Yeah, he complained the whole way, but he still did as instructed.

No one in Bayverse was an enabler, and moreover, Optimus got to have those emotional moments, at least in Age of Extinction. What was best about that (as I said in my post defending Bayverse Optimus), is that Optimus actively sought out a reason to not abandon his morals. It was downplayed, but the conversation with Cade before he earns Grimlock's respect is Optimus looking at the abyss of no return he's staring at, and he's reaching behind him for someone he knows will pull him back from making a terrible mistake. Likewise, even as he's kinda OOC during the campfire scene and assault of the factory, he made sure no humans were killed.

And the righteously angry Autobots listened to his orders for no killing.

This is why I feel the moral struggle in TFP is inferior to Bayverse's take on it: the former is a man who's locked up emotions courtesy of being the only adult in a room of enablers coming close to throwing it all away because "no one cares, and what's the point now?", and a man who has put it all on the line, lost everything, and turns to a source of his suffering and pleads, "Give me a reason to stay good. Please, before I do something I'll regret."

I'd have loved episodes with Optimus, where he gets to unwind even slightly, and get to struggle with bottling everything up for the others' benefit. (Yeah, that scream was...low-key terrifying. Also maddening because the teens do nothing but gawk at dad justifiably crashing out from the stress.) I'm forever grateful that that line was cut because Elita One deserves better than just getting killed off or being a source of pain for Optimus, but...it would have been better, if only because we'd have avoided Arcee being hypocritical in how she nearly visited violence upon Ratchet. You are correct, Optimus never inflicts abuse on his team as opposed to Megatron, though I think in that scene, had it stayed...Optimus probably would have stiffened, grit his teeth obviously, maybe even visibly shake, and respond, "Old friend, your mind has been impaired by the synthetic energon. Your judgment for its use also brings up many concerns for your insight, and I cannot allow, or tolerate, such behavior from my chief medical officer. You are henceforth confined to base, and temporarily relieved of your duties, until I can trust you again with the health concerns of this team."

Yeah, they unfortunately were more concerned by foils.

Wait, for real? That's laughable, honestly. They may as well have called it the Arcee Show, because at least that would have been proper advertising. (You are also correct, though regarding Wheeljack I'd just like to add how the "always welcome" bit became meaningless/was revoked after "Hurt". I still despise how Ratchet got off for that, as well as how Optimus just stood back and let the others have their way.)

Seriously, what was wrong with just Cliffjumper? Not to mention, throwing in a past trauma makes us realize that her behavior post-Cliffjumper's death is basically the norm for her. Yes, she's justified in wanting vengeance for one or both, but to just pretend like Cliffjumper didn't exist after the five parter? I mean, she only mentioned him like twice on her own after that, right? (You are correct, Airachnid excels in psychological torture, and Arcee not even falling for the bait but nosediving for it...speaks badly about the Two-Wheeler. And let's not even talk about "Armada", that's just plain atrocious on so many levels.)

"Out of the Past" was a good episode - for Miko. Arcee....actually, Optimus should have been the one to talk things out with Miko. Arcee being there comes off as her being preachy about things, in a way (I'll have to rewatch it to be sure), because it's all about Arcee's struggles rather than Miko's. And I mean, Miko just came back and saw her partner getting defibrillators put on him. Optimus should have talked to her, because then 1 they'd both hash out their feelings of how to handle this blow, and 2 they'd both benefit from a chat, and it wouldn't feel like it was Arcee's spotlight episode (again.)

Honestly, I wish we could have gotten more out of Airachnid, too - and I wish we could have heard her playing off of Peter Cullen. I mean, Gina Torres is a talented/experienced VA, and she could keep pace with Frank Welker. Imagine if Optimus had an episode (or three) where he and Airachnid are duking it out. My mind would have blown from the awesomeness (you make excellent observations and, while the "making species endangered" I feel is a tad much, that certainly adds on to her creep factor.)

Exactly! Bulkhead had enough people hanging around him to make his later background position less glaring, + give the others (Wheeljack and Miko) chances to shine. Speaking of, what drives me mad is how we never learn why Bulkhead and Breakdown were beefing. I used to imagine it was "buddies pre-war chose opposite sides and took it personally", but that's still kinda weak.

Heck yeah, he was done dirty. And really, I can't argue anymore that Bulkhead should have died. Not only would it have made their claims of "we're serious about killing characters" more genuine, it would have done better for everyone else's development. I think you're right about Breakdown getting more development (excellent point about them copping out of giving Airachnid more depth - I am once again reminded of TFOne), and thank you! I'm glad you liked those ideas. I feel that would have been better, though given the writers' track record, I don't think I'd trust them to treat Smokescreen that well. But at least we can imagine better!

Oh. I think I vaguely recall that - though I'd also call that a superficial foil (golly jumpings banana splits, they really were obsessed with foils if that was their idea of an "official" foil for Bee.) Yeah, I always made the KO vs Ratchet connection, so them claiming otherwise....that's a load.

That's it: if it's done well, it's great, but when two thirds of your cast become irrelevant courtesy of their foils disappearing, that's a bad sign.

Also -

#I said this before but Flamewar would've made a better rival/foil to Arcee#Mostly because she has a lot going on for her outside of her being a foil/rival to Arcee + she is severely underutilized/underrated#But yeah I don't think everyone should get a foil/rival because it genuinely gets to a point#Like Bumblebee and Knockout for example#Arcee and Bulkhead had Metal Attraction as their “grudge fight” episode against Airachnid and Breakdown + even Miko pointed that out#Additionally those four have confirmed “history” with their respective foils/rivals and WOULD come at each other when there's an opportunit#Having a similar episode made specifically for Bee and KO would've solidified their rivalry/the fact that KO is Bee's foil imho#To me their little skirmishes was more of a “they're both present at the same time” kind of situation rather than them genuinely having bee#KO aside it would've been interesting to see Dreadwing being the one beefing with Bumblebee since he's the one that killed Skyquake#Not only does it differ from the usual “they share the same frame types” formula for the Arcee-Airachnid and Bulkhead-Breakdown foil/rivalr#Because Dreadwing has a solid reason for going after Bumblebee + if Arcee and Wheeljack are allowed to seek revenge then why not him?#But all in all more focus should've been placed on Optimus and Megatron's relationship and it's a bit silly how this is often sidelined#Once again it really makes you wonder how differently things could've turned out without all those issues...in another universe I guess

Yes! Arcee and Flamewar should have had knockdown, drag-out catfights, especially since then Arcee would have time to be independent of past trauma, and then we'd finally get Flamewar onto the screen. Seriously, I'd love to have that nasty femme on screen, and I detest how she's just been left in the background.

I remember @kzele pointing out first that Dreadwing should've been gunning for Bee, and that rivalry would have been awesome. I guess since Bee was nothing but a mute, though, that they felt they couldn't get much out of him (and probably didn't want to address that Bee flipping disemboweled a dude.) And why all the physical resemblances for foils? Come on people, get creative!

Thanks for the reblog! If you have anything else to talk about (or that I missed), come on into my ask-box anytime!

[jazzimena]

You raised a lot of great points, Blade! A lot of which made me think about the many missed opportunities that Prime could’ve used…and I want to touch more on that. I’m in a pretty ranty mood, and I hope it’s okay!

It’s baffling that Optimus never once got his own episode (Nemesis Prime and Triangulation wasn’t even character-centiric), but it was an even bigger crime that the Orion Pax arc never did that. We could’ve gotten more backstory on Optimus’/Orion’s past with Megatronus via a/some much–needed flashback episode(s), but instead, we got unequally distributed character–centric episodes.

Frustrations aside…I can’t speak on Bayverse (I need to rewatch it), but I agree with your points. Team Prime enabling one another’s bad behavior (hypocrisy, inaction, insubordination, refusing treatment to a wounded ally, etc.) is both unfortunate yet unsurprising. Plus, given how borderline toxic they can be to one another, especially those not within their “circle” (read: them “ganging up” on Wheeljack and Smokescreen), it’s often difficult for me to view them as a close–knit “family” that cares about one another. I’d rather have them depicted as a semi–dysfunctional family, but it seems that the writers insist you see them as “perfect”.

It also doesn’t help there’s this “rift” between Optimus and his own team.

In the show, we see the other OG members getting comforted and assured by Optimus that what they “did” (Arcee in Partners; Ratchet in Stronger, Faster; Bumblebee in Operation Bumblebee) was “justified”, and that they didn’t mess up big time. But you know what we didn’t see? The team extending the same courtesy to Optimus.

Yes, Optimus is someone who rarely reaches out and often turn down offers for unwinding…which begs the question why we never see anyone even trying to do so. To me, this makes Team Prime’s “family” status questionable, especially since Optimus still has to bottle up his emotions around them. What’s even worse is that Nemesis Prime demonstrates how easy it is to make them turn against Optimus! Have they forgotten who reassured and comforted them? So much for “family”.

This is also why Arcee’s “Primes don’t party” line is concerning, because not only does it suggest that Optimus is 100% incapable of unwinding, but it also highlights how everyone just had this “oh well” attitude towards that. Yeah, they probably tried…but seeing this distance between Optimus and his own team (and how they quickly antagonized him), despite the show endorsing them as a “family”, is just sad.

Also, the show’s insistence to prevent Optimus from snuffing Megatron resembles Arcee’s situation with Airachnid, even if Optimus’ reluctance is more understandable since we did see his inner turmoil (in contrast, something similar does not work for the Arcee–Airachnid rivalry, making its “conclusion” all the more baffling). Plus, I do think Optimus would’vesnuffed Megatron in Crossfire had the ‘cons not arrived.

Now that you mentioned it, the OG members (Arcee, Bulkhead, and Ratchet specifically) were very against giving second chances to Megatron. But still...since it’s implied that Arcee told the team that she shot a comatose Megatron, it would’ve been funny to see Bulkhead exclaiming “You missed?!” while Ratchet quietly losing his mind. (You know, Optimus aside…the writers seem to vehemently refuse having Megatron stay dead, as shown by the many times he was “resurrected”, especially in Predacons Rising…).

So, regarding Elita, it goes without saying that she deserves way better than simply being Optimus’ “dead partner” (I like to think she’s alive), because it gets to a point. But speaking of “dead partners”, Arcee really didn’t hesitate, huh? Yes, Ratchet was very wrong, but did you see how quickly she went for him?

Anyways, I think a way to up the ante in Stronger, Faster would be to have Ratchet mention the names of many fallen Autobots while blaming and insulting Optimus for it. Not only does it emphasize just how much Ratchet did not hold back, but it’d also highlight the immense loss the Autobots suffered (rather than only mentioning Cliffjumper). Also, that dialogue you wrote…Ratchet, I’d beg for forgiveness if I were you.

Now onto the “foils”.

The show’s issue with just Cliffjumper is that his death was intended to be the “gotcha!” moment that’d kickstart Arcee’s “vengeance” towards Starscream. But at the same time, there’s Airachnid. Airachnid is a sadistic predator that has this sick and twisted obsession with going after certain “preys” due to how “fun” it’d be for her to psychologically/physically torture them. Here, Arcee becomes her “prey” due to how “quick and stealthy” she is. Airachnid wants the thrill of the chase.

That is a good set up for their hostilities…until, the writers decided to copy paste the “dead partner” route by having Airachnid snuff Tailgate. Seriously, why not make Arcee’s revenge stemming from her goal to never let anyone else experience the same horrors as she did? Is “dead partners” really the only way to make Arcee beef with anyone? Not only that, but Airachnid in particular also gets the short end of the stick since she couldn’t exist as her own character outside of being Arcee’s rival/arch nemesis. I really wished we had gotten more of her, and I would’ve loved to see her fight other characters. That said, seeing her fight Optimus would’ve been awesome!

Moving on, now that you mentioned it…while I enjoyed Out of the Past, I…also felt that the episode focused more on Arcee’s struggles than Miko’s own. It would’ve been better if, say, it was Arcee that first asked Miko about her fond memories/stories of Bulkhead before having her open up about Cliffjumper. Though, I would’ve preferred to see this talk occurring between Arcee and Jack instead under different circumstances…because, let’s be real, in some real–life cases, I…don’t think talking about yourself when another person’s going through it is the best course of action. (Plus, the episode’s implication that Arcee had “made peace” becomes questionable when you consider her sarcastic quip on losing “two seasoned partners” towards Smokescreen’s apology in Alpha Omega. I don’t know about you, but bringing up your late partners as a “gotcha!” towards someone apologizing to you is really distasteful, Arcee…).

Negativity aside…having Optimus comfort Miko would’ve been amazing! If the show truly knew Miko, then they’d know that she’d have the initiative to get to know Optimus and make him unwind! (like how she immediately approached Bulkhead in Darkness Rising)

Given how eager and persistent, yet also kind–hearted and emotionally intelligent she is (how looked out for Bulkhead Post–Hurt), she’d definitely pull it off! Inspired by your post and some reblogs, I feel Optimus would even see a bit of Megatronus in her (or even his rebellious younger self), and that’d definitely work in Miko’s favor! Eventually, to everyone’s surprise…they’d come to see Optimus sharing tales of Cybertron to an eager Miko, and on some days, they’d FIND him quietly watching a monster truck show with Miko as she chatters on.  

This would’ve been a great basis to their heart–to–heart! Bonus points if it was Miko that was entrusted with the key to Vector Sigma (because I never got the impression that Jack had “Prime–like” qualities). All in all, this scenario with Optimus and Miko would show how, despite the immense stress and pressure he’s in…Optimus will always have time for his family and would genuinely open up/unwind to those that truly care.

Actually, you’re not alone! Bulkhead and Breakdown being pre–war buddies make a lot of sense! We see how the two cooperate really well with one another (almost in sync) once they set aside their beef in Operation Breakdown. Plus, like I said, Breakdown’s the most Autobot–like Decepticon. I’m willing to bet that his decision to join the ‘cons caused the initial fallout between the two (plus, unlike other Decepticons…Breakdown’s digits/fingers aren’t sharp, making me think he was once a construction worker along with Bulkhead).

Nice to know that someone else thought of that, because a Bumblebee–Dreadwing rivalry would’ve honestly been awesome! I also think that Bee needs a foil/rival so that we can actually get more of him. If they ever fought, I’d imagine it being like Bee’s fight with Blitzwing. Though, do not think Dreadwing would be snuffed (his brother’s death not only pushed him to train himself/anticipate the Scout’s movements, but to also reminds himself why he’s doing this; to avenge his brother, Skyquake). Bumblebee better watch out.

So, this turned out longer than anticipated. The gears were really turning in my head! Please feel free to reply/reblog whenever, and i hope this week treats you well :)

[blade-liger-4ever]

Thanks! I'm glad to hear I did something good! No worries, sometimes a good show needs to be ranted over when it passed up golden opportunities for even more awesome content.

Now that you mention it, the "Orion Pax" arc was criminal for showing Optimus at like, three different points per episode, if we're lucky. They could have had (and should have shown) Optimus asking questions about how things have changed, why Megatron's title is "lord" now, and the manpower involved in hunting down a scant few Autobots (oh gosh, I just had visions of Optimus doing a rapid-fire questioning of things in the vein of Miko - that would have been awesome!) Seriously, Optimus is the leader, he needs to have more attention given to him.

Thank you, that means a lot! I'd have to watch the films in their entirety again myself, but I had the realization the other day that the Bayverse cast really does just...handle crap that's thrown at them better than Team Prime does. That's a good point, and now that you mention it, Team Prime comes off as a toxic family in many ways (side note, but if the family dynamic had been handled similarly to that of Star Wars Rebels' found family theme, then it wouldn't be so egregious. Heck, if they went that route for the show, then Team Prime being a "family" would actually be far truer than the show paints it to be.) What's amazing to me is that the main writers/"brains" behind TFP were responsible for the Bayverse films' scripts, or the initial ones anyway, and I have to ask myself: Was Bay really the problem there, at least outside of the human cast? (Also their "ganging up" on much needed fresh troops simply because they "don't catch on fast enough" or are "mavericks" is infuriating due to their history of the exact same, at least in their renegade behavior.)

Holy. Crap.

It's a literal "all take and no give" situation. Optimus is the giver who receives nothing in return, while the others take from him without giving it back. It's almost like they're parasitical in their relationship with Optimus, not made better by the fact that they'll so readily pull iron on him, as you pointed out. Gosh, how did we all view this show as perfect for so long with the glaring flaws....?

See, on the one hand, it "infers" that Primes aren't supposed to be seen being what amounts to party animals, but at the same time....when the resident drama queen kid is the one to ask where your leader is out of concern, and is met with casual indifference.... Houston, we have a problem. Now that you put it that way, it's sad enough that you'd have to laugh over it to keep from crying, because Optimus is the one who's been suffering the most. No, he won't ever say it, or even think it, but he's been forced to lead in a war he never wanted, lives with the fact that thousands have died on his behalf, wonders if there was ever any good in his best friend turned mass murderer, and is constantly doubting his choices (which is NOT made better by how Team Prime always questions his decisions. Refresh my memory, how is that a healthy family dynamic?)

Oooo, good point - they really have a problem with this and all their beloved foils (don't forget, Bulkhead was happily going to let Breakdown get dissected while still alive until Miko intervened. Annoying as the show can be now, gotta love how she always advocates for an Autobot's life to stay online - yes I included Breakdown there, no I won't take it back.) He probably would have, which is why I prefer Bayverse's treatment of the moral dilemma: he still refused on his own to not kill out of revenge, whereas TFP throws Plot Armor in to keep Optimus from killing Megatron.

They were actually pretty against it for all the Decepticons. Ratchet wanted to chop up Megatron, Bulkhead kept begging for Megatron to die (see above for his thoughts on poor Breakdown), and Arcee - well, that buttload of evidence speaks for itself. (Lol, that would have been funny - sad too, because then there's more emotional damage Optimus has to swallow....might have led to Miko or Fowler calling them out on it, though.) That's a good point, they really don't like the idea of killing off Megatron. I mean it works in the first season - mostly, at least - but after that? You could at least keep it canon he's dead after the S3 finale, people.

Oh thank you! She deserves so much more than that (I, too, imagine her as alive - which is technically canon!) Oof, yeah. Arcee's preaching about "stronger as a team" and whatnot becomes very hypocritical with how she was gonna beat up Ratchet so quickly. Sheesh, this is why she's getting dialed down in my main AU; she needs development still, but golly is she otherwise such a contradiction that I need to reel it in for any character development to stick.

Oh yeah, that'd have been better - and if you'd wanted to truly have driven home how deeply it hurt Optimus, have the last name be Dion, or even if you wanted to keep a "lost Lenore" deal with Optimus while teasing us if Elita is alive or not, throw in Ariel at the end and then see Optimus stiffen as everything he thought he knew about one of his best buds comes into question (heh, thanks - I would be too. Yeah, I felt Optimus should be allowed to realize that maybe Ratchet's input isn't as invaluable as he thought - I mean, with how Ratchet's such an enabler himself, there comes a point where the person being taken advantage of, even if he's subconsciously taking advantage of another, needs to take a step back and set some boundaries.)

Speaking of how unfair it is for Elita to be Optimus' "dead partner" for personal woe, it's equally unfair that Cliffjumper's whole existence was just for that. But since the genders are reversed this time, I guess most people are willing to let it slide. Yup, yup, yup! That is exactly what Airachnid is all about, and the more challenging her "prey", the more "fun" she's gonna have.

Which also makes the "personal" stake in it for Arcee...confusing. You could have simply had her traumatized by her first encounter with Airachnid, and she falls for Airachnid's schemes out of desperation to protect others from her sadism (which, coincidentally, would have given credence to her informed "maternal/compassionate" role on the team.) But instead, Arcee is apparently so proud that the only reason she'll consider you a worthy target is if you take away someone she personally held dear. I also wish Airachnid had been better thought out enough that she could be independent of Arcee's trauma nonsense, especially since she climbed the ranks among the 'Cons as fast as she did. And yes, her vs Optimus is a match up we were denied! Seriously, it would be hunter versus warrior, cunning versus wisdom, and that would have been beautiful to see (speaking of, you're giving me confidence to make another thought post I had in mind regarding certain questionable choices with spider-themed Decepticons from the era of 2007-2013, so you may want to stay tuned for that if I decide to give it a go after all.)

Yeah, it's a fun episode for the action on Cybertron, but otherwise it really comes off as Arcee going "oh look at me, I've suffered so much" to a girl who is quite literally going through the most traumatic experience of her life. You don't do that to someone who is in shock like that, especially since you still don't know for sure if the object of the trauma is gonna pull through or not. (I just thought of this earlier, but did Arcee ever...tell Jack about either of her partners? Like, she just brushed it all off after Airachnid's appearance, and as far as we know, his only knowledge of Cliffjumper comes without the guy even being named in "Darkness Rising, Pt 5".) See, that's what's annoying: Smokescreen took the genuine steps to apologize, and showed that there was no ego involved as opposed to Arcee's claims, yet rather than be satisfied with it, Arcee just says "I already lost two partners, I don't need a rookie on my scorecard."

I'm sorry, since when were you fond of the guy enough to even deign to consider him a "new" partner? Are you that busy naval gazing that you 1 can't acknowledge and accept his apology, and 2 so intent on keeping him outside your little circle that you'll sooner kick him out with a snide remark like that than do - literally anything else?

Oops, I made this about Smokescreen, heh. But yeah, I agree, so much for her moving on...

Yes! Miko would have absolutely have reached out to Optimus, especially since he had to have been pacing or something as they waited for word on Bulkhead's health.

Oh girl, you just melted my heart! That would have been great! And funny, to see everyone flabbergasted over the development...

You're the second or third person I've seen suggest Miko as the holder of the Key to Vector Sigma, and that is honestly awesome the more I think about it! And definitely makes more sense than Jack - kid's got no spine, and to be "Prime-like" requires backbone and guts, both of which Miko has been blessed with to a staggering degree. And yes! That would have been beautiful and awesome, and in addition to giving her Ironhide for a partner, I am now totally gonna figure out a way to have her bounce between him and Optimus (it won't be that much of a stretch, tbh. They go back a ways, and I can see Ironhide coming up to Optimus when he's emotionally in a bad spot and basically just tossing Miko at him like "Woe, Miko be upon ye." XD XD XD)

Oh sweet! That's cool! Yeah, the "Operation: Breakdown" sequence helped me come to that conclusion, at least I think it did. Breakdown's definitely the most Autobot-like Decepticon, and given the amount of 'Cons becoming 'Bots we've had in the franchise, it's a crying shame we were denied that with Breakdown. Funny you should mention that, because when I was doing research, I found out that Breakdown used to work on a dam. So, you're not far off the mark, and I actually utilized that for an old idea where he and Ironhide had history in one of my early rewrites.

Indeed, especially since of all the background foils, Bee vs Dreadwing is the only one that makes sense from a plot standpoint (yes, aesthetically it's pleasing to have polar opposites, but there was no relevancy to the overarching story with Arcee vs Airachnid and Bulkhead vs Breakdown, though you could have swung it with the latter for Breakdown's eventual turn.) Because truly, if I were in Dreadwing's place, I'd ask for the name of the killer and hunt him down, not just grab any Autobot in sight for the kill. That is a very good idea for how it'd go down and you reminded me of how Blitzwing's getting development and his lost redemption arc in my AU as well, and YES, Dreadwing would not have his Spark snuffed out. He's crafty, more experienced, and more familiar with a hunt than Bee is. Scout's gotta stay on his toes!

No worries, and I hope the week treats you well, too. But before that -

#Just a bit of addition-but I've always found it OOC for Miko in particular to point her finger at Optimus in Nemesis Prime#This was the same gal who THREATENED Megatron and is VERY vocal with remaining on the the Autobots' side#Let's also not forget how she FIRMLY decided to stay with the bots both in Darkness Rising and when June was about to make her leave#I firmly believe it was an implicit attempt to “maintain” the connection between Jack and Optimus Post-Orion Pax#Especially since he was the ONLY human who BELIEVED Optimus#But now that I think about it-there was no reason for Fowler and Raf to be SUSPICIOUS of Optimus#ESPECIALLY Fowler since he's known the bots AND Optimus for far longer than the kids#And did Raf forget about the small moments he shared with Optimus in Scrapheap-the S1 finale-and the ending to the Orion Pax arc???#I'm getting a bit out of topic but i really dislike the special treatment Jack's getting BY THE SHOW#Anyways Miko would have been able to tear down Optimus' walls (just as she did Bulkhead's) via her own ways and I am 100% down for it

Oh heck yeah, and I wouldn't be surprised. They had to keep Jack relevant to a degree in order to have an excuse (or ten) to use Arcee non-stop, while I guess the initial whiners against Miko would have had a hissy fit if she'd gotten the Key (I also hate how much attention Jack consumed from the show's cast.) And really, what's with having Fowler or Raf turn on Optimus like that? Could they really not sell the Nemesis Prime arc that well, or were they just desperate?

Seriously, I gotta consider some Optimus and Miko content now. That'd be beautiful - though I also confess I can see Flint opening up to him a tad bit, too.

Let me know if I missed anything, and I hope to have you here or in my askbox again some time!

[brightrednight]

Okay I'm late to the party but I'm still mad because the best time for Optimus to demonstrate a lot of personality is when he's being stressed in unusual ways, so even just a tiny scene would've been better than what we got.

like, consider: it's mid-s2 and Optimus is decoding the Iacon database.

the kids get off from school and are promptly warned that Optimus is acting a bit weird, don't mention it, don't even look at him for too long, just stay out of his way (like how we do with athletes when they're playing a good game, y'know?)

and we get to the base, and MUSIC IS BLARING SO FUCKING LOUD. (Whatever genre you think he'd like best, but I default to acid punk just bc Orion spent too much time in Kaon's red light district while he and Megatronus were building the revolution.)

Optimus is sitting in the weirdest position imaginable (because librarian!) and he's using a tablet as a calculator and looking increasingly frustrated because nothing is balancing the way it should.

Someone, let's go with Jack because really he should not always be the writer's pet, tries to turn off the music, and everyone immediately collectively winces.

Optimus, visibly irritated, not looking away from the tablet: are you the one currently decoding the database that's been leading us to weapons of mass destruction? Jack: uh. no. Optimus: then you don't get to pick the music. Jack: sorry. Optimus: Jack: Optimus: Turn it back on. Jack: -oh, right.

There's just something so nice about the team having to work around Optimus for once and not the other way around? (Yet another way Optimus and Megatron foil each other but also that sounds exhausting.)

[brightrednight]

be kind, in little ways or big ways, but especially be kind when it matters.

pay a stranger's bus fare when they're going to school. let someone skip the line in the pharmacy when they have a stomachache. share your class notes together if there's a test coming up. call in a favor to help someone find a job.

be kind.

[unhappy-sometimes]

okay would you guys believe me if i said i actually wrote a twiyor fic this time

screenshot for proof

[epickiya722]

It sucks that there are some people who see Celine as the worst "villain" in the movie as if there's not other characters who have done even more selfish, despicable things.

The most Celine did was have Rumi hide her demon side out of fear (understandable) and grief. Even still we don't see her watching her, despite being fearful of Rumi's demon side and hatred for demons. The girls still get to live off on their own without Celine's supervision.

Not excusing her actions. But seeing it from Celine's side of things and having seen what demons, including ex-human ones, have done, it's not hard to see Celine acted the way she did. I don't doubt Celine's love for Rumi. I do think she did come to love her like her own daughter. And I do think she did want to have something (someone) of her close friend, Rumi's mother around.

I don't think Celine is all that cruel, just scared. Rumi's mother may have seen a different side of a demon that she fell in love with (possibly), but Celine didn't. All she knew was how vicious demons are. Heck, we don't the whole story of Rumi's parents.

What if Rumi's father didn't love Rumi's mother and manipulated her the whole time? What if he used tricks that lead to Rumi's mother's death? Why was he a demon in the first place?

I'm not saying Celine is completely right, but I do think some people aren't understanding her actions and see her as a total villain. Yes, she is at fault for Rumi's insecurities, but she didn't do any of that out of malicious intent. I wouldn't say she's a "bitch" when there is worst characters in the movie.

[foulfirerebel]

Preserving @sir-adamus's tags likewise for pointing out the age old double standard:

KPop Demon Hunters asking a fandom to decide who's worse a flawed maternal figure or the guy responsible for thousands of deaths through a story and they'll always dump on the maternal figure 

like Jinu has exactly zero problems getting people killed in exchange for not having to feel bad about abandoning his family but sure Celine is the real bad guy 

Celine has certainly caused harm she's not the one enabling the forces of evil

[kyriolex]

Hot take, because I am feeling contrary: Celine was right.

Rumi wanted to tell her teammates about her marks, saying they would understand. Celine says “no girl, it’s not safe, don’t risk it.” And what’s the first thing Zoey and Mira do when they see Rumi’s marks? They don’t hear her out. They draw their weapons on her and get into battle stance.

It’s possible that if Rumi had revealed her marks in a calmer setting, the girls might have sympathized. But the fact is that the minute Rumi’s arms were exposed, her life was in danger. Yeah, being true to yourself is nice, but survival is better.

You could argue that Celine was the one who taught the girls anti-demon absolutism in the first place. This is true. But…the movie doesn’t exactly prove her wrong? All demons, even Jinu, are ruthless cannibals trying to destroy the world. Some feel guilty about it. But they’re still doing it.

That’s where the coming-out/internalized prejudice metaphor falls flat for me. Because being a demon is objectively bad in this narrative. Rumi asks Celine why she couldn’t love all of her, but the marks are basically a soul-corrupting curse that exacerbates negative emotions. While the hunter’s “Hide your flaws” motto is unhealthy, passively accepting the marks that threaten Rumi’s very soul wouldn’t have been much better.

For me, Celine saying “I refuse to follow my duty and kill you, even if your existence threatens the world” is a much more radical act of love than saying “Accept your demon side, queen! Never change!”

And yes, I KNOW the tattoos and demons and such aren’t meant to be taken literally. In the metaphorical subtext of the story, Celine represents an antagonistic force of shame. But in the textual, concrete facts of the narrative, Celine is not a villain and doesn’t deserve to be lumped in with the likes of Abuela from Encanto or Mother Gothel from Tangled.

[brightrednight]

^^^ THIS is exactly why I keep saying metaphors ruin the message.

Like, really, why is your internalized shame metaphor making the characters soul-sucking cannibal slaves? Why are you making the text of your story so entirely divorced from your metaphor?

Here's my question that may make a lot of assholes and fanatics shit their pants trying to answer:

Did we really need this? Did Rumi really have to be a half-demon? Couldn't we just have portrayed this directly and made her depressed/anxious/autistic/whatever with no correlation to demons at all?

Would really it have taken anything away from the story to just portray the metaphor directly?

[classjezter]

For the Sparklings already out. How fiercely protective are the carriers and sires? Are they the type of someone even looks wrong at the babies they're gonna get mauled or are they slightly relaxed but wary

It mostly depends on the creators themselves. While all are protective in the sense that they’re laser-focused on eliminating any perceived danger, especially during the first vorn when a sparkling has no armor and is at their most vulnerable, what counts as a “threat” varies for each.

Prowl, and especially Jazz, tended to err on the side of caution. Smokescreen and Bluestreak were rarely out of their sight, and they allowed only those they deeply trusted to touch or hold them, and even then, they kept a watchful optic to ensure everything was fine.

Ironhide and Chromia, on the other hand, were bursting with pride and excitement over their Road Rage. They showed her off to anyone willing to look and were far more relaxed about who could be near her.

[brightrednight]

so, uh, smokescreen's green eye is on his left side, but in the pic above, it's on his right. therefore, i can only assume he's vegging upside-down on Prowl's shoulder and Will Not Be Moved For Anything.

(although, maybe being upside-down improves his vision just slightly? or makes the input less headachey? weird shit affects medical conditions, bruh, i don't got an explanation for ya.)

[thewriteadviceforwriters]

💥 Small Writing Habits That Genuinely Changed How I Write 💥

listen. i’m not here to sell you a productivity system or convince you that waking up at 5am will make you a novelist. i am deeply Not That Girl. HOWEVER, here are 5 chaotic little writing habits that quietly rearranged my brain chemistry:

✏️ typing BEFORE i know what happens i used to think i had to outline everything before writing. wrong. i get more done when i let the scene surprise me. just start with vibes and a line of dialogue. the rest shows up once you start moving.

🗣️ saying the scene out loud like a play no joke. talking my scenes out like a script?? life-changing. the pacing, the emotion, the rhythm of it all makes more sense when i act like i’m gossiping about my blorbos in a voice memo.

⌛ 20-minute timers (not for productivity, just to start) i tell myself “just 20 minutes.” sometimes i stop. sometimes i blink and it’s 2 hours later and someone’s been emotionally eviscerated in chapter 12. this one’s black magic. use wisely.

🕯️ re-reading my WIP like a book no editing, no judging, just reading through with snacks like it’s already published. changes how i see the pacing and emotional arcs. also reminds me it doesn’t completely suck.

🧂 leaving in the messy parts i used to delete scenes that felt “off.” now i just write a little comment like “THIS IS BAD BUT KEEP GOING.” turns out momentum matters more than vibes. shocking, i know.

anyway. tiny habits. huge mental rewiring. 10/10. highly recommend.

[classjezter]

Have jass and prowl experience those nights where either of the twins won't sleep or ate too fussy to do so?

Yup

The Autobot’s greatest minds, defeated by fussy sparklings

[brightrednight]

Jazz and Prowl had developed a protocol for The Crying. Namely, if one twin was distressed and starting to rattle like he was about to cry, Prowl was meant to take the one that wasn't upset to his office. Distance dampened the bond slightly from a roar to a trickle, especially among infants, and the noise made it much less likely that the other was going to freak out. (It had a 25% chance of working, which really made it more convenient to keep going than not.)

Prowl had taken Smokescreen to his office a whole deca-phase, two joors, three breems, and two cycles ago, and Jazz is two more cycles of crying away from breaking.

Bluestreak isn't leaking, he isn't hungry, he isn't colicky, he doesn't have a glitch in his vox, he isn't shedding armor plates, he isn't too hot or too cold or too tightly wrapped or too loosely wrapped or being bitten by bitey bugs or being bruised by a rock under his blanket or suffering kinks in his wiring or anything else Jazz can think of.

He drops his helm into his hands and stares at his wailing infant from between his wingers. "Bluey, please," he begs.

Bluestreak stubbornly wrenches his volume higher.

"Does he want a toy?" Sunstreaker asks from the doorway. He has earphones covering his audial receptors, the absolute fraggin' glitch.

"He doesn't want any of his toys, or my horns, or to be rocked or fed or bathed or sung to or put down for a nap or be covered in my field," Jazz sighs. He's close to screaming himself at this point.

"Distract him?"

"Right, because I haven't thought of that - what, do you want me to wiggle my fraggin' doorwings?" Jazz snaps.

"Well, have you tried that?"

"... no," he admits, and settles in front of his sparkling to catch his attention - he keeps wailing - and very deliberately wiggles his doorwings like he's seen birds flap their wings.

Bluestreak's mouth shuts and his eyes cycle wide. He reaches up with one pudgy hand. "Sa?"

"Oh, thank frag," Jazz murmurs, and flaps them again.

[professorsparklepants]

You could never turn me into a Celine hater. Even outside of the clear generational trauma that fuels her "faults and fears must never be seen mantra," even outside of her putting aside generations of teachings to raise and protect a half demon, even outside of her throwing away Rumi's sword when asked to kill her adopted daughter and frantically trying to find a way to pull Rumi's life together. You could never turn me into a Celine hater. You know why?

Because the Huntrix girls eat. Not only do they eat, they gorge themselves on food directly before a monumental performance in front of thousands of people.

I'm an actual kpop fan (for my sins). I have seen and heard some shit. And my most horrifying kpop fact that I keep in my back pocket, have personally horrified three different discord servers with, and rank personally higher than the burning sun scandal, is this: that when kpop idol Momo won Sixteen, a nationally popular survival show that decided the lineup of Twice, she was a last minute judge's veto and personally handpicked by the founder and CEO of their label. And then she was told by the staff that unless she lost ten pounds before their live debut, she would not be allowed into the group. So she worked herself to death exercising to lose the weight. And all she ate. Was ice. For a week.

You could never make me into a Celine hater. I don't care if this is an idyllic alternate universe where the horrors of the music industry don't exist. When an industry that drives nearly every person in it into horrifically obvious eating disorders is the real life example that Celine is being held against, I will defend this woman to the death. Her girls EAT.

[brightrednight]

Okay, Celine actually has three facts working in her favor.

1: She has clearly worked through a frankly insane amount of trauma before training the girls.

The girls EAT.

Bobby ISN'T a standard abusive kpop manager.

They can take BREAKS.

They're allowed INTERNET.

You know who probably didn't have all that?

CELINE.

Celine probably vetted whoever she was going to leave in charge of her new generation of hunters. She had to - what standard kpop manager is going to let them eat like bodybuilders and go out every night to hunt demons?

But it was also for their health. We don't ever see her bandmates except once on stage, and the only thing we know about them is that Rumi's mother managed to carry her to term.

And I know it's a popular hc among the fandom that Celine killed Rumi's mom for fucking a demon (primarily because it was deleted content) but I don't fuck with that theory, so what if she actually died in childbirth from mandated malnutrition weakening her heart? It's not out of the realm of reasonable.

2: Celine never lied to Rumi.

Rumi knew what patterns were as a child. She knew her parentage and everything that happened. She knew that hunters kill demons. It was never a fact that got hidden from her.

You know how easy it would've been to say "those are birthmarks"? Or "you were born with a medical condition that gives you stripes"?

NO! Celine told her the truth. Those are demon patterns. Hunters kill everything with demon patterns, but you're not like them, so you're an exception.

Which leads neatly into-

3: Rumi is a demon.

She is. There's no real denying it. There's nothing concrete that says she isn't one.

Let's put it into perspective, since no matter the metaphor they're trying to push, there's no real world comparison that fits properly and metaphor mongering is how we lose the story.

For all Celine knew, Rumi was literally a living bomb.

But every other demon who's come up to the surface world has been an adult come to steal human souls, so Celine dismisses every other bit of evidence, digs in her heels, and tells Rumi every day since she's a baby that she's not like the others. Because she isn't, is she? She's got no appetite for souls. She isn't vicious and horrible and cannibalistic. She's just got patterns. Patterns are a warning sign, a lighthouse warning for jagged rocks on the shoreline, but they haven't crashed on the rocks yet, so she always keeps Rumi's patterns covered, but she still isn't afraid to touch her.

And she loves her and raises her as best she can.

Rumi is confident, silly, loving, kind, well-educated, and well-socialized. She's not afraid to do things that might make the girls upset - she doesn't think twice about releasing Golden without warning them, or putting the signing tables together.

Rumi is also secretive and paranoid because she's been raised with a Sword of Damocles above her head, but once again, she was raised knowing she's half human and half bomb, I think that would fuck anyone up.