Top 10 Reasons Mikaela Should have Been the Human MC NOT Sam Witwicky
I want to make this clear in advance that this is NOT a roast or hating on Sam. He's not bad kid. He's just a bad choice as a main character and was never a good fit for the Bayverse. He comes across as the comical side character not the actual help.
1- She can fight. - I think that it should be a requirement for every modern human ally to be able to hold on their own and not play victim all the time. And I will never stop reminding people that Mikaela took down Frenzy with a chainsaw like a total badass and might I add, was the one saving Sam not the other way around. Plus, when Bee lost his legs, she literally drove him in the middle of the war zone so he could fight. Even in G1, Sparkplug and Spike used to participate in the fight. In fact, even one off humans would stand their ground. Sam is not fighter. He is just extremely lucky.
2- She fits the theme of "more than meets the eye". - Not judging something by its looks is the very core theme of Transformers and she fits that impressively. Mikaela looks like a shallow bimbo, but she is actually a talented mechanic, a tech genius, and has sensible life and relationship goals. For a character who was a supposed to be a prop, she wound up being so much more. Sam is... not. What you see is what you get to the point where that's pretty dull.
3- She is actually useful to the team. - She's a mechanic and tech wiz who figures out Transformers tech pretty fast which is not only impressive, it helps the team. The only thing Sam had to offer were the glasses and since then, beyond representing the Autobots, his skill set was pretty small.
4- Her character and story are pretty compelling. - Mikaela's backstory is not just humble, but speaks volumes about her ethics, her survival skills and her willingness to take risks to do right by those who she is loyal to. She knows what it's like to suffer and sacrifice from a young age because she didn't have it so good. Yet even then, she tries to do good meaning she is an unbreakable person. Sam is just your typical well off kid who is just always lucky somehow. He never went to bed hungry, never lost someone permanently and never had to be forced to choose between job or education (more on this later).
5- She's likeable. - Yes, she absolutely is. When you get to know her, you get to find out that is loyal, willing to bend over backwards for you, committed, intelligent and makes good on her promises. All she asks for all that to be reciprocated especially in a romantic partner which is not unreasonable. I hate saying this, but as I got to know Sam more and more, I got to progressively dislike him. He become more egotistical, selfish and immature (more on that later too). Plus, he clearly has commitment issues and sees girlfriends as trophies or sources of comfort which is pretty disgusting.
6- She underwent character growth. - Her experiences with the Transformers made her grow up, develop a sense of purpose and started to want better for herself including romantically. She may not have been able to go to college, but she was taking steps towards trying to build a life for herself and was now dating with a purpose. Unfortunately, Sam was really lagging if even that when it came to growing up because in the third film, he regressed.
7- She can stand on her own two feet. - Let's face it. Mikaela doesn't need Sam. In fact, in the spinoff AU comic, SHE is the star while Sam actually winds up dead (which I admit is kind of harsh) which is very telling about both of their characters. Like I said before, Mikaela is not a damsel in distress. She's a survivor. She's even done jail time. If she was the main character and we saw the broken up version of her, she would probably be alone, but happy while focusing on herself and letting the right one in naturally. Sam on the other hand clearly has emotional dependency issues which is why in the third movie, he replaced Mikaela so quickly and easily with the first girl he found. Sadly, I don't think his new relationship was destined to work either.
8- She's cool to watch. - An MC has to be entertaining to watch. Sure, Sam is funny, but I have to be honest, he's not cool. He's clumsy, he's kind of annoying and dull. Mikaela does things that are interesting, she fights, she's resourceful and she doesn't wait to be told what to do. She take initiative. That is the stuff heroes do.
9- Everyone remembers her. - When people think the Bayverse in terms of humans, everyone remembers her first and Sam second. Most fans I meet don't even remember Sam's last name. Everyone remembers her energy, her feats, her passion, her story and her skills. In fact, she was so memorable that it really is no wonder that in the Bumblebee movie, Charlie was made to be a lot like her. I love Charlie, but there's no replacing Mikaela Banes.
10 - She IS a good role model. - Mikaela may have started off as a diamond in the rough, but she actually is what people and even girls should strive to be when you stop and look at all her qualities. This also extends to her love life. She was through with booty calls and wanted something real. She couldn't get into college, so she got a job and was honing other skills too which would have changed everything had she stayed. Plus, she makes the first move in a lot of things which also shows she may have what it takes to be a leader. Plus, she has a way of making you want to better yourself which I think is great. Sam is not a bad person, but he has a lot of growing up to do and as he was even by the end of the third movie, he still had growing up to do.
Anyways, those are my reasons. Can you add to the list or disagree with any of them? Let me know.
PS: I stand by that if she was still around, she and Wheeljack could have been a totally awesome team.
