William and Michael Afton are the same man born twice.
They share the same face. They shared the same last name. They have both killed people. They both have owned and operated Fazbear restaurants and have experience repairing animatronics.
William "dies" and "possesses" his own corpse inside the spring bonnie suit. Michael "dies" and "possesses" his own corpse to puppeteer around. The only difference is one had the robot kill him from the inside while the other from the outside.
The changes between the two stem from one place. Their reaction to death. Michael feels regret for killing his younger brother and goes on a lifelong journey to right his wrongs.
William kills because he is a mad scientists so scared of death that he'd rather sacrifice his humanity in order to postpone his ultimate judgment.
Some Starscream and Bumblebee human concepts hehe definitely finetuning them!!
Silly thing below.. Starscream can be a little mean.. as a treat.. also i just like the quiet and/or mute canonizations of Bumblebee, especially paired with how Starscream doesn't stop talking AHSHDB
"Come on, this isn't funny." "I'm not joking. It's locked."
"Is that the only tent we have?"
"There's only one bed." "Well, darlin', I'm not sleeping on the floor, so I guess we'll have to share."
"I'm your bodyguard. It's in the job description to protect you at all times." "Well, could you at least 'protect' me from over there?"
"You have got to be kidding me. I have to share a room with you."
"What do you mean there's only one sleeping bag? You had one job."
"Quit following me!" "I was hired to follow you, princess, better get used to it."
"What the hell is that noise?" "Uh, yeah, slight problem. We're out of gas."
"Where are you going? We're in the middle of nowhere!" "Yeah! And whose fault is that?"
"Look around, love. In case you hadn't noticed we're snowed in. So unless you plan to freeze to death, we'll have to find a way to keep each other warm."
"I may be stuck with you, but I don't have to like it."
"Is now a bad time to tell you I'm claustrophobic?"
"Your heart's racing. Now, I know being pressed up against me is exhilerating and all, but I'm trying to concentrate on picking this lock."
"What are you? Afraid?"
"Uh. Slight problem. We're trapped."
"Well, which way, smartass?" "Uh. We might be lost."
"Come on, this isn't funny." "I'm not joking. It's locked."
"Is that the only tent we have?"
"There's only one bed." "Well, darlin', I'm not sleeping on the floor, so I guess we'll have to share."
"I'm your bodyguard. It's in the job description to protect you at all times." "Well, could you at least 'protect' me from over there?"
"You have got to be kidding me. I have to share a room with you."
"What do you mean there's only one sleeping bag? You had one job."
"Quit following me!" "I was hired to follow you, princess, better get used to it."
"What the hell is that noise?" "Uh, yeah, slight problem. We're out of gas."
"Where are you going? We're in the middle of nowhere!" "Yeah! And whose fault is that?"
"Look around, love. In case you hadn't noticed we're snowed in. So unless you plan to freeze to death, we'll have to find a way to keep each other warm."
"I may be stuck with you, but I don't have to like it."
"Is now a bad time to tell you I'm claustrophobic?"
"Your heart's racing. Now, I know being pressed up against me is exhilerating and all, but I'm trying to concentrate on picking this lock."
"What are you? Afraid?"
"Uh. Slight problem. We're trapped."
"Well, which way, smartass?" "Uh. We might be lost."
Though I think the more intentional foils to Sentinel are meant to be Orion/Optimus and D-16/Megatron in terms of the writers' intention, I think in some ways Starscream and Sentinel do foil each other whether the writers intend it or not and I think they have the potential to foil each other in interesting ways in the future too even if Sentinel is dead if they ever explore TFOne Starscream's character more. Now everything I say is mostly interpretation, inference, and headcanons since we had a total of like 5 minutes of screen time for TFOne Starscream lol so I would like to preface that these are just my personal delulu thoughts. I think what's interesting about the potential parallels between Sentinel and Starscream is that in some ways they may share many similarities, but also greatly diverge in other ways. I think they are cut from the same cloth in a lot of ways. For instance, in terms of similarities I think they share traits of being very prideful, arrogant at times, ambitious, scheming, cunning, vain, and inclined more toward self preservation and can have tendencies of self-interest.
It's kind of ironic and funny that one of the major differences between them is loyalty. In most other continuities Starscream is the one betraying leaders to take power for himself, but in this one its Sentinel who does that. And in some ways TFOne Starscream's actions can be interpreted as showing a very strong sense of loyalty to the 13 Primes. Like instead of trying to make any deals with Sentinel to save his own skin he'd rather choose to live 50 cycles in exile on the dangerous surface in terrible conditions with no energon flowing on the planet and being hunted down like animals by both the Quintessons and Sentinel (even after they get caught he instead curses Sentinel and tries threatening him instead of trying to join Sentinel's side to save himself). Not only that but he and the rest of the High Guard are essentially committing guerilla warfare and still trying to sabotage Sentinel even after 50 cycles of these living conditions. I've mentioned it in other posts, but most people do not simply commit guerilla warfare under those conditions for your average deceased leader. To choose to suffer like that I think potentially indicates the possibility that the High Guard and Starscream cared very much for the 13 Primes to keep fighting to avenge them. So in this way I think they foil each other in that Starscream ironically shows great loyalty to the 13 Primes and their memory while Sentinel shows none.
It's also interesting to note that Sentinel criticizes the 13 Primes mentioning his disdain that he spent half the day watching them losing a war and the other watching them waxing poetic about 'loyalty' and 'honor'. Sentinel seems to not have cared at all or at least very little for their cause and for the Primes. Meanwhile Starscream when talking about who they are mentions that they were the High Guard who witnessed Sentinel's betrayal and saw the Primes fall and that they've been doing whatever they can to sabotage Sentinel. Like to hold such anger at the betrayal implies a certain amount of 'loyalty' and 'honor' to either the cause you were all fighting for against the Quintessons, defending Cybertron, or for the 13 Primes themselves or maybe even all of the above. If Starscream and the rest of the High Guard did not care for these things there would be no reason to be so angry and emotional over the betrayal. Because if they do not care for these things why not join Sentinel and the 'winning' side? But they don't and they're full of anger and vengeance so it means they must care a great deal.
Now you might wonder ‘If Starscream was apparently so loyal to the 13 Primes, why did he not follow Optimus and pledge his loyalty to him since he’s the new Prime actually chosen by Primus and holds the Matrix of Leadership as proof to back it up?” And of course this is just my headcanon, but the reason I think Starscream holds no loyalty to Optimus is because to Starscream Optimus from his point of view has not proven himself as a leader worth following and has not done enough to win Starscream’s loyalty in his eyes (I might make a separate post about why Starscream thinks this about Optimus later but this post is already getting very long so I leave that for another time lol, also I would like to note that yes I do personally think Orion was worthy of being a Prime and holding the Matrix but I'm discussing things from specific character perspectives in this post). I feel like to Starscream just having the title of Prime is not enough even if you were chosen by Primus himself. He strikes me as a skeptic who wants to see proof that you deserve the title and are worthy of it before he’s willing to follow you. And considering the movie portrays the 13 Primes in this continuity as honorable leaders who live up to their title and names, I think their deeds and actions proved that they were worthy leaders worth following for Starscream. I think this is one of the potential great contrasts between Starscream and Sentinel in TFOne. Whereas Sentinel’s loyalty will never be to anyone except himself, Starscream’s loyalty is also to himself but it can be extended to others.
However, to gain Starscream’s true loyalty I believe is very difficult but once you have it I think he’d go to great lengths for you even so far as going into exile and using all his wits to scheme/keep you alive/do anything to see your side wins/succeeds. I personally believe that he followed the 13 Primes not because they were Primes but because of who they were as people. So even if Optimus is a true Prime chosen by Primus it means nothing to Starscream. I feel like Starscream is the kind of person who’s audacious enough to tell god to his face that he thinks he made a stupid ass decision if he truly thinks so and will elect to ignore the decision if he disagrees with it. It’s arrogance bordering on hubris that comes with both pros and cons. On one hand, it’s a good thing to not just blindly follow anyone just because they have the title and it’s important that there is someone there who will point out a leader’s blind spots or poor decisions even if the leader most of the time makes good decisions. On the other hand, this arrogance also potentially results in pig headed stubbornness when you’re convinced you’re right even if you’re wrong.
I don’t think Megatron at this point in time has Starscream’s true loyalty either. Not that he’s already planning to betray Megatron since I think he actually believes Megatron has the potential to be a leader worth following, but that Megatron only holds his tentative loyalty. I think Megatron won major points in Starscream’s eyes in succeeding to kill Sentinel but I think Starscream will only follow Megatron so long as he deems Megatron is living up to his role as leader and I think unlike other members of the High Guard he’s the most skeptical and critical of Megatron’s inexperience in war and leadership even if he holds belief in Megatron’s potential at the same time.
This is not to say that I think Starscream is incapable of betrayal. I think he very much is but I think the reasons that would push this version of Starscream to betray someone are different. I think the reason why TFOne Starscream never tried to betray the 13 Primes to gain power in this version is because he saw no reason to. Yeah you guys haven't won the war against the Quintessons, but if the leaders are competent and you care about them and they care about you, you feel like you're all in this together and have a good work environment. I don't think Starscream was unambitious, I think he was very ambitious considering he made it all the way to leader of the High Guard, but I like to think he was satisfied with his life pre-Sentinel betrayal and therefore had nothing larger to prove as he'd accomplished a lot at that point. Leader of the High Guard working directly with the Primes, known as legendary warriors and defenders of Iacon, and noteworthy enough that you are recorded in history in the archives that Orion notes he read about them and Bee knows them both by name and face to be able to point them out individually from each other. It is prestigious even if the job may be dangerous.
And even the Decepticon logo in my opinion has a very personal meaning for the High Guard different than for Megatron/D-16. Because to the High Guard Megatronus Prime was not just a figure they heard great stories about. Megatronus was someone they probably fought side by side with, someone they knew personally. They probably talked with Megatronus, made jokes together, shared meals while out on campaign fighting Quintessons, risked their lives in battle fighting together. To them having Megatronus' face branded on them is probably not simply the way a fan picks their favorite superhero as their logo for a movement, rather to the High Guard the action to them probably feels closer to remembering a beloved deceased friend and comrade-in-arms they admired. The branding mark probably symbolizes multiple meanings for them. For many it probably also symbolizes how they'll never forget him and will always remember him carrying him with them in every battle. And I personally don't think this contradicts them believing the age of Primes is over. I think for the High Guard they hold a certain reverence for the original 13 Primes and only the original 13 Primes. But the "Age of Primes" for them has ended because their leaders/friends are all dead and are never coming back.
I think one interesting angle they could potentially go with if Starscream decides to betray Megatron and try to kill him in the future is if he thinks Megatron’s way of leadership and decision making down the line have become a threat to Starscream's life and the lives of others under his command. Because the High Guard have been fighting together long before the start of the movie I think it opens for the fun possibility that Starscream cares about the members of the High Guard to a degree and there is a certain bond that forms from spending so much time fighting side by side together even if you may get on each others' nerves at times. Therefore I think it'd be interesting if he betrays Megatron trying to kill him in a warped way of trying to save both himself and those he cares for. A 'you're going to get us all killed and I won't wait around for it to happen. I did not spend 50 cycles trying to keep as many people alive for you to throw it all away' sentiment.
It would even be more gut-wrenching if in the beginning of them working together Megatron and Starscream had grown to have a somewhat amicable working relationship with Starscream as a mentor-like figure guiding him and they became almost somewhat friends before things start devolving and fracturing as time passes. Starscream thinking something along the lines of 'It's simple math. You kill one to save the larger number of people even if it hurts to do so. Someone has to make the ruthless and hard decisions. There's no room for sentimentality in war. I have to think of the bigger picture.' And even worse if the betrayal and attempt to kill Megatron fails and Megatron feels like he got betrayed by someone close to him again thinking Starscream is just like Sentinel trying to gain power and leadership for his own selfish ambitions and vanity. Meanwhile Starscream feeling like he's been driven to a point where he has to go to extremes because he thinks Megatron won't listen to anyone but himself and thinks Megatron is blinded by selfish personal desires like Sentinel that led to Cybertron being almost doomed because of shortsightedness throwing away lives of their own troops for little gain just like Sentinel did. Sentinel being the ghost who haunts their narrative and plays on both their traumas of the ways Sentinel's betrayal affected them warping their perceptions of each other. For Megatron it's being betrayed by someone who he thought was on his side again/trusted, while Starscream feels Megatron will doom them and the entire planet through his reckless and shortsighted plans to feed his own personal selfish desires/grudges. Large parts of both their personalities differ from Sentinel, but I think if things hit this breaking point they will only interpret each other's behavior through a 'Sentinel lens' if that makes sense seeing only the worst parts of each other.
I got a little sidetracked lol, but back to Sentinel and Starscream being foils I think even the ways their vanity is displayed demonstrate their differences. Sentinel has his statues of himself and Starscream has a whole throne built for himself. They both show signs of vanity and self-importance. However, Sentinel's statues are pristine golden statues essentially obtained through selling out your own species to the enemy for short term gains by truly bowing to the enemy. Meanwhile Starscream's throne is a made of what looks like scrap metal in a dilapidated ship because he chose exile over bowing to Sentinel or the Quintessons. TFOne Sentinel and TFOne Starscream have the potential to be really fun explorations of characters who on the surface may be very alike but in certain core aspects are so different. I hope this adequately answered your ask!
”Soundwave put a gag on that one” “Soundwave read that guy’s mind” “Soundwa—“ I KNOW they drive him crazy the way he’s the only competent one, wouldn’t be surprised if the rest of the high guard often goes to him for most problems (esp when they’re like “I TOLD you it wasn’t tight enough” or “that just means he believes himself” y’all omg then don’t tell him to do stuff if you’re just gonna say he did it wrong 😭)
And so this is how Soundwave copes with the stress
tfone Starscream is so fascinating, bc here's an untold story there. Like, implications that he has some moral integrity, as ruthless and cynical as he is now.
Because here's the thing - there's people claiming the High Guard was pissed at Sentinel bc he made them lose their high standing in Cybertron. But the thing is... If that's true, they could easily just gain that same high standing back if they just pledged loyalty to Sentinel and his caste society. They could still be the High Guard to a "Prime" and still do the same things they do. If their moral integrity is that low.
But they didn't. Instead, they stubbornly survived on the surface, choosing to live hand-to-mouth and at constant risk of being killed by either Quintessons or by Sentinel because they're rebelling against him.
Heck, even Starscream - you can't really JUST claim the reason why he chooses exile was just to maintain his leadership and power over his group. Like, he could have done that while not at the constant threat of starvation or death because let's face it - some incarnations would have him cozying up to Sentinel, still live in Iacon and maintain his privilege and comfort in any way he can, and then just find an opportunity to stab Sentinel in the back and then rule over Cybertron himself.
But he doesn't. Their exile is straight up a horrible situation, but they still chose it over serving Sentinel. It just gives off implications that they aren't really as self-centered nor immoral at the start as you'd think, that there ARE some lines they won't cross. It's more heavily implied that they DID use to be a prestigious group with ideals, but repeated travails lead to said ideals corrupted over time.
YES!! You put it perfectly like I agree with everything you said and it is so fascinating the implications the movie gives us about TFOne Starscream and the rest of the High Guard in general! So many different possibilities! Rotates them in my brain like a rotisserie chicken!
I think Transformers One Starscream has so much potential as a Knight in Sour Armor with Jade-Colored Glasses trope.
For those who are unfamiliar with the trope Jade-Colored Glasses is like having the opposite of Rose tinted glasses. Basically you have or have gained a cynical way of looking at the world. Meanwhile the definition of the Knight in Sour Armor is: “The world is filled with Wide Eyed Idealists who believe in truth and justice and devote their lives to fighting for it. And then the dark, cruel and brutal world keeps letting them down. For them, Being Good Sucks. But rather than giving up on their goals, they choose to fight, not because they believe they will truly make a difference, but because it's the right thing to do…They're usually survivors who have largely given up on believing in Honor Before Reason, but still strive to be Lawful Good or as close to it as reality allows them to be. They are willing to bend the rules to save them.” (Definition taken from TVTropes)
I just think there’s something really interesting that TFOne Starscream was leader of the High Guard working directly with the Primes and the fact that he states they witnessed the Primes fall and have been doing whatever they can to sabotage Sentinel has so many unsaid possible implications. Like you don't stay in exile and commit guerilla warfare on someone in terrible dangerous conditions just for your average run of the mill leader who passed away, like there's the high possibility that the High Guard personally cared for the Primes a lot and believed in their cause. You explained it really well, that going against Sentinel does the High Guard no favors and yet they still do it. They obviously have the odds stacked against them and if they genuinely pledged their loyalty, Sentinel could have a trained fighting force with years of experience under him which they could use as their bargaining chip to get him to agree plus it probably strokes his ego if the High Guard bowed to his rule. They could have been living much more comfortably if they just sold out to Sentinel, but they don't.
I also think there’s something to think about how yeah Orion during D-16 and Starscream’s fight stopped Dee cause he firstly did not want D-16 to go committing a murder right then and there, but I think there’s also something to be said that Orion used the words and recognized that “he’s not the enemy” in reference to Starscream in this moment. And tbh at that point in time he’s not their enemy yet. The High Guard have such knights in tarnished armor vibes. (I also have some thoughts about possibilities of why they chose to follow Megatron over Optimus even if the Matrix chose Orion but this response is already really long so perhaps I will save that for a separate post lol)
Do you think tfone Starscream has crazy amounts of guilt
Like, he's the leader of the High Guard - their purpose was to protect the Primes and Starscream failed.
Do you ever just think about those first days after Sentinel's betrayal? On how UNPRECEDENTED everything is. On how to them it feels like the world ended. Tfone's Cybertron never had an energon crisis before - can you imagine the confusion, the horror everyone felt when the energon suddenly stopped flowing?
How do you think the High Guard felt at that time? They're fresh out of battle with the Quintessons, barely escaped with their lives, comrades dead, the Primes have fallen, and Sentinel got to Iacon before they did. Do they feel raw? Was the despair and bitter defeat cloying?
The energon is drying up. Sentinel still lives and holds Iacon under his deceitful grip. Every few colar cycles, he and the Quintessons ruthlessly hunt for you, while you scramble to hide, barely scraping enough energon to keep yourselves alive while nursing your wounds, physical and emotional.
You cannot go home again. Your enemies rule the skies above and the ground below.
How do you think Starscream felt at that time?
There's no more Primes to fall back into. The next authority in line is a traitor and wants everyone's heads. You have no allies in Iacon - the masses eating up lies from Sentinel's hand like the energon you scarcely managed to find.
There's no one else to defer to or to rely upon — you're on your own. As the leader of the only group who knows the truth, this entire shitshow falls entirely on you to fix. And everyone else? Whose confusion anger panic fear grief despair mirrors that of your own. They look to you to what to do, desperate for answers, desperate on what to do. You don't KNOW what to do.
This never happened before. You don't THINK it'd ever happen. Losing the Primes, losing the Matrix, losing the war. Do you think Starscream vented a little faster that day? A little shallower?
Like, some people seem to vastly downplay just how much the High Guard's situation sucked. It's true they're barely won anything against Sentinel if at all, but considering their odds, can you blame 'em?
You’ve put my thoughts into words perfectly! YES!! Love this! These questions rotate in my brain constantly!
For real I imagine TFOne Starscream is probably drowning in guilt even though it’s not like he could have predicted this would happen and it is unlikely that he could have done anything to prevent it. Considering Alpha Trion’s distress beacon ended up in the trash and never likely reached the High Guard, it’s kind of amazing that the High Guard made it in time to even witness Sentinel’s betrayal at the cave at all. But even though I personally don’t think there was anything more he could have done to prevent the Primes’ deaths, I don’t think it stops Starscream from feeling guilty about it. The plaguing questions of ‘what if I had been just a little faster would our friends and comrades be alive?’, ‘would the planet not be devoid of energon if I could have saved even one of them?’, ‘what if I had seen the signs of betrayal earlier and acted on it even if it was just gut instinct?’, ‘would we not be suffering and get to go home if I did x,y,z differently?’. And even if logically there was likely nothing he could have done, guilt and grief don’t always follow logic.
His survivor’s guilt must be off the charts. Like he probably not just feels like he failed in his duty and let everyone down, but the Primes are probably people he’s fought side by side with for hundreds if not thousands of cycles considering Alpha Trion mentions the war with the Quintessons has lasted thousands of cycles and Starscream has at this point in time made it to the rank of being leader of the High Guard. He probably cared about them a lot and probably even considered them friends. And the longer they are exiled and conditions get worse as time passes he probably feels like he is failing his troops too, but as leader you cannot express doubt or everyone else falters and loses hope.
I agree with you about how unprecedented everything was and how scary that would be! I also think that even if there was a war with the Quintessons and they might have been prepared that one of the Primes could die, I don’t think the High Guard ever expected that all the Primes would die at the same time leaving everyone leaderless. I don’t think there was a protocol on what to do if that happens because of how unprecedented everything is like you said. I think the entire High Guard is scared, angry, confused, hurt both physically and emotionally from the betrayal, and grieving. And I think Starscream feels the same as the rest of the High Guard, but you're the leader so you cannot break down and give up even if you really want to.
Like being a leader sucks in this situation. There’s no gain or glory from it. Any decision you make could get you or another friend/warrior killed and add another person onto your already steaming pile of guilt. If anything, being the leader is a burden. But you’re all that’s left. Someone has to be the leader and make decisions and keep everyone together. And someone has to shoulder the consequences if anyone dies in the process. Not being a leader allows you to be free of a certain degree of guilt/burden if things go wrong because it wasn’t you who made the decision and you have someone to blame if it does go wrong, but that means as leader you shoulder that burden because someone has to and in some ways so that others do not have to. It keeps the group functioning no matter how damaging that might be to yourself. You still have a duty and you have troops who are looking to you to know what to do. You’re their leader so you have to put on a brave face because what else can you do? The alternative is giving up and dying. Their situation is so bleak, especially since they’ve made the decision to not bow to or follow Sentinel.
I personally headcanon that Starscream’s personality has always been ambitious, scheming, arrogant, and a bit mean but that he also tried to keep as many people alive under him and did care about them even if he’s also got strong self preservation instincts. The High Guard are probably used to him acting a certain way and a deviation from that would probably set them all on edge or panic. They expect you to be strong, arrogant, loud, and to act like you know what to do. Familiarity brings comfort and I think Starscream was aware of this. In some ways I think Starscream’s bravado is half genuine and half playing a role that he knows the others need to see from him to stop members of the High Guard from falling into despair. Like when he talks about ‘a unified Cybertron is a myth’ sounds personal, bitter, and a cynical outlook but he immediately follows up that sentiment that the ‘only thing that matters is the strength of one bot over another’ to the crowd getting them to cheer. Like maybe I’m just being delulu and looking way too far into things, but I feel like there’s a tone shift when he says the second half like it’s a rallying cry he’s said hundreds of times to keep up morale considering the phrase that ‘a unified Cybertron being a myth’ is a very depressing thought. TFOne Starscream and the High Guard are so fascinating to me because there’s so many unsaid things and possibilities. Like for Bee to know them as legendary defenders of Iacon and for Orion to have read about them in the archives means they probably accomplished some amazing feats protecting the people of Cybertron to have their actions and names recorded down in history pre-Sentinel betrayal.
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