#the only reason I haven't made more animations for his wings is because I didn't have ideas

[leftshiftwashere]

Showing him off because I'm proud as hell

I think the doorwings are one of the best parts because guess what! I animated them

So basically the animations they have: Idle, walking, running, swimming, jumping, hurt

He was a pain to texture and at some point I got scared I'll have to start from scratch, mostly because I messed up the files and the textures wouldn't apply. Obviously in the end I fixed it because I simply can't stop winning.

His animations also got a bit messed up. I planned for it to be possible to run and jump without the jumping animation interrupting the running one but oh well.(Not sure what went wrong I adjusted the priorities correctly)

Also I'm thinking of adjusting the hurt animation to be faster because it's not as clear

Annndddd also have a regular skin of him I made. He's very bald though

It's just that I got too hungry and bit his doorwings off. Whoopsies!

Anyway 👋

[sleepytoycollection]

In Which Moose Toys Made a Dislestia Child and I Am Amused

This isn't really a review proper, but this Magic Mixies set was brought to my attention by @sparklyaxolotlstudent after they pointed out that the "pegacorn" of this set looked like a MLP Discord fankid lmao.

So needless to say I became interested.

After just getting into MLP this year, and especially being a fan of the draconequus character Discord, I thought the idea of another toy company taking a stab at a the idea of horse/dragon creature was funny.

Granted, MLP didn't invent the horse-dragon. Qilins and longmas long predate our colorful horse friends. So it's not necessarily borrowing from MLP, but come on. When was the last time you saw one in a little girl's toy line?

The set comes with all this stuff to do the magic potion thingy. Call me lacking in whimsy, but I didn't wanna do all this shit. I just wanted the toys.

It also comes with some info about our new friends.

Moose Toys call this creature a pegacorn. Now "pegacorn" is sometimes used to describe a unicorn/pegasus. It's what MLP calls an alicorn, but there's no way this creature isn't also part eastern dragon too. It has scales. And Claws.

Let's back up a bit tho, and look at the dolls fully.

I really like the Pixlings dolls. This is actually my third one now. They're what Enchantimals could've been if they were good. I wish their shirts weren't molded on, but it's not a deal breaker if only because they're so nicely painted.

The only reason I haven't acquired more is that they have a LOT of leftover trash. The potion bottles these come in can't really be used for much else, and they're not worth donating either. So that's a LOT of plastic going to waste. Wish I could just buy the dolls without all that mess tbh.

Still a cutie of a doll.

I also appreciate they gave the pegacorn articulation! It's so rare anymore to see animal friends in doll lines that don't feel like cheap afterthoughts.

Now to address why this set, the pegacorn especially, makes me think MLP. -deep inhale-

Rainbow Star looks like a Celestia/Discord fankid.

Look at this child and her divorced parents. Tell me she doesn't look like the designer at Moose Toys ships these two.

Even the name "Rainbow Star" fits.

Hell, if her dad were Discord is would explain the nonsensical butt wings. Nonsense is kind of a given for a child of chaos. Plus Discord in the show flies with magic, and his wings are useless when he's de-powered. So placement wouldn't matter if she's using magic to fly as well.

Now I don't personally go for this ship, but it's still pretty funny. Either this was on purpose or one hell of a coincidence.

Putting MLP aside tho, I do like these little guys.

Unia could use a little bit of a restyle...

Wait a minute, if you imagine the blue replaced with purple, doesn't Unia look a little like human Princess Cadence?

Okay that's enough for today. Bye.

[yanderes-galore]

Can I ask for a rivalry between transformers animated Megatron and starscream oneshot?

Oh a scenario? I haven't done a rivalry scenario before- Sorry if something seems off, I finished Season 1 and only just started Season 2.

But... the dynamic of Megatron and Starscream is pretty much the same in all incarnations from what I've seen. It should be okay regardless. Darling is a Decepticon. This also takes place in an AU before TFA. So right before the Allspark situation. Left on a cliffhanger as I didn't know where to take the story after. May have a sequel in the future?

Deception and Loyalty

Yandere! TF:A! Megatron vs Yandere! TF:A! Starscream Scenario

Pairing: Romantic

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Jealousy, Attempted murder, Violence, Stalking implied, Cliff hanger, Rivalry.

Starscream has always been envious of Megatron. For countless stellar cycles his goal has been to take his place. Starscream has many reasons to bring Megatron offline.

Starscream craves power. He craves respect. He's jealous of the fact Megatron can push him around but he has to take it.

However... there's something else Starscream's jealous of...

Your loyalty to Megatron.

You are one of Megatron's most loyal Decepticons, or at least close. The main Decepticons in command under Megatron included Lugnut, Blitzwing, Blackarachnia, Starscream, and you. Although... Starscream's position was being revoked due to his betrayal attempts.

When Starscream was still a somewhat loyal commander, you caught his optic. At the time he first met you, you simply tolerated Megatron like Starscream. Despite this you carried your duties in the Decepticon leader's name.

Starscream found himself attracted to you, a fellow Decepticon. He often dreamed of the day he'd take over and you'd listen to him. Since he adored you so much, he thought of you as his second-in-command.

But over time... Megatron seemed to have a similar connection to you. Based on the fact Megatron gave you Starscream's position as the years passed by was enough confirmation. Megatron has stolen yet another thing from him...

The one Decepticon he actually cares deeply for.

This only made Starscream despise his "leader" more.

Starscream's assumption was right in the end. Megatron does have a similar attraction to you. The idea surprised the Decepticon lord when he noticed it.

You often follow his orders, already much better than Starscream. You aren't obsessive about him like Lugnut, which is a refreshing change. You're even a very composed Decepticon like Blitzwing, yet less unstable.

In Megatron's eyes your promotion is simply because you are the perfect servant.

But it became more than that.

Megatron also notices Starscream's distress when around you.

Megatron finds himself treating you differently from the rest. He never finds any reason to hurt you like he does with Starscream. No... in fact Megatron treats you with care.

The idea of causing Starscream discomfort only encourages Megatron's obsession with you.

Your life as a Decepticon was not very eventful for the most part. At least, your jobs around the ship weren't. Your encounters with Megatron and Starscream are always a bit... off.

First of all, you are the one Decepticon Megatron didn't even belittle since your promotion. Every Decepticon is usually met with Megatron's taunting or degradation. To be fair... many of the others were incompetent.

Although you still found it odd.

Megatron respects you. You aren't complaining and even show him the same respect. Your mutual companionship with your leader was what made Starscream act up.

It wasn't... in fact, Starscream was never annoyed with you.

Starscream is the other strange experience that happens to you on The Nemesis. The Decepticon who used to rank above you now ranked under you. You thought that was the cause for his irritation.

The con often follows you around The Nemesis like a clingy pet. His wings are usually angled down around you, meaning he's at ease. Starscream sometimes talked with you but usually seemed too... nervous or occupied to engage too long.

Despite this you didn't find Starscream as annoying as Megatron made him out to be. Around you Starscream actually seemed... behaved compared to his usual fights with Megatron. You tried not to question the con too much.

You swore he had a bolt loose sometimes.

You always knew about the feud between Starscream and Megatron. What Decepticon didn't? Starscream never approved of Megatron's leadership....

It wasn't until you look closer into their behavior that you realize power isn't the only issue.

You're more involved in their feud than you thought.

While you worked to keep The Nemesis up and running, there's conflict behind your back. Megatron is often trying to keep Decepticons like Starscream away from you for a reason he's still trying to understand. Meanwhile Starscream is plotting another murder plot to keep you to himself as his subordinate.

You don't get the full picture until you listen to them.

Starscream is caught muttering your name at times to himself. Megatron himself is adamant on you keeping post by him in the ship. Then there's the arguments.

According to Blitzwing and chatter you've heard yourself, one of them brings you up when they fight. This usually makes the other one go off. What confuses you is why you are such a popular topic amongst them.

Trying to get the answer isn't easy. Starscream tends to lock up when you ask him, wings shooting up in alarm before he ignores the question. He doesn't seem like he ever wants to answer you.

You utilize the loyalty you have with Megatron to ask your Lord the question. Megatron grumbles towards you but you get some sort of an answer.

"I'll give you that intel another time."

It's an answer but you're still left in the dark. You have no clue the two are not only fighting over power... but their obsession over you... the efficient Decepticon simply doing their job.

Months pass and both of their obsessions solidify. Megatron has finally come to the conclusion he wants you not only as a loyal second-in-command, but a partner. A romantic partner, which is a shocker to Megatron.

Such a realization only makes Megatron more defensive about you.

Starscream has already loved you in a romantic sense for longer than Megatron. In desperation, the Decepticon has gotten bolder. You'll feel him tap your armor to get your attention, then you're met with a strangely talkative Starscream.

He never lets his plans about Megatron or his obsession slip, however.

Tension rises in The Nemesis between Starscream and Megatron. The only "good" thing that comes out of it is you finally understand.

You almost wished you didn't.

An inevitable fight between the two breaks out in one of the larger rooms of the ship. You can hear the screaming and the sound of blasters. You made your way to the room... only to catch the argument.

"Your crush on that Decepticon must be put to an end, Starscream!" Megatron bellows

"Do you think I don't know your intentions!? You love them too! I can TELL. You're so sickeningly NICE to them!"

"SILENCE."

"Make me! I'll bring you down someday and I'll have them under my command again!"

"You are such an IDIOT. I'll have you executed. I'll make sure you never see them again."

"Good luck with that when you're offline!"

It's obvious who they mean. You know deep in your spark you are causing their feuds to be worse. The worst part... you aren't sure how to stop it.

Eventually one of them will kill the other. Your bets were on Megatron, but is that a good thing? It's not like you could just ignore it.

Megatron is your boss and Starscream will follow you. On this ship you are... stuck. You begin to think the only way for them to stop fighting is to have one of them die.

You never enter the room. Once the noise died down you assume they had finished. With an uneasy feeling within you, you continue to work.

That is until you're given an alert later on in the shift.

Supposedly there was an Autobot sighting. Not only that, but it's close to the Allspark Megatron's been hunting. The news makes you vent out of relief.

A new mission... one that could hopefully stop the fighting momentarily until the Allspark could be secured.

You hope that this mission will allow the two cons to put aside their obsessive fighting to focus on the task at hand.

You had no idea that this event was only going to make your life worse....

[aworldoflovely]

Trigger Warnings: Discussions of SA both current and in the past. Extreme emotional distress and deraotory language towards someone physically different.

This is purely fiction and is just a fun hobby that helps me with stress during free moments in the day.

If anyone has any ideas for how this could be better or if there is something that stand out just let me know!

*******

Hawk's was standing in Enji's holding cell. He looked even more miserable than Enji.

"You were my hero, I tried so hard to live up to you. After the PLF mansion and the video and my wings, we were all so hurt. Your family was so crushed that I thought everything i had based my life on was a lie. I was so close to just giving up and letting myself fade away. But you came back, and you fought, and you sacrificed, and you attoned that. That indomitable spirit. I thought it made up for everything."

Hawks took a deep breath through his nose.

"I guess I was just desperate. If you came back, proved to the world that you were still a hero, then that was proof that I was too."

Enji looked at Hawks, the blubbering child begging him for answers. Reasons that could hopefully patch up the heart of that ugly little boy in that shack years and years ago.

Hawks looked at Enji with eyes red rimmed and dilating. Without his wings, it really made the other animal parts of his physiology stick out.

"Were you always like this Endeavor? Did- did being a hero change something in you that drove you to this point?"

Enji had a headache. His entire body ached and burned. The only relief that he had gotten these many months was when he was with his Touya. But that relief was long gone. He was due to be in court at 9am for his sentencing. He wanted to sleep at least a couple of hours.

He had no patience for Hawks. No patience for anything.

Enji let out a sigh, and barley kept himself from rolling eyes.

"You should know why. You've fucked him too."

Hawks started at this.

"You know how he looks at you with those big blue eyes. His voice panting and moaning. The way he just crumbles beneath you"

Red started to climb up Hawks' face. "Shut up,"

Enji smirked. He could at least have fun with this. "You've felt what it's like to have him squeezing you just right. No one else feels quite as good as him."

Hawks started to bear his teeth. Fucking animal.

"He's so sweet, my Touya. Just a little bit of affection, and he'll do anything for you. Is that how you did it, Hawks? All that information you hand delivered to me, just pillow talk between you and the closest thing you would ever have to my attention?"

Quirk or no quirk Hawks was still physiologically different from a regular human. The raptor stress grip in his hair was proof of that.

"It makes me so sick to think that i ever looked up to you. I would sell every soul in this country if it meant I could go back in time and rip your heart out before you could even breathe in your children's direction -"

"Why did you come here, Hawks? To tell me what a miserable person I am? I already know it. To enact revenge? Then why haven't you done it already? Or did you come to try and see if there was a part of me you could salvage? Just like when we fought side by side against All For One and you were so relieved that all of those awful things I had done didn't matter anymore? I'll tell you this Hawks, the only one who bought into my atonement more than you was myself, and you saw how that shattered in the end. Now, either do something or leave because you are helping no one, not even yourself, just standing here wheeping."

[wordsandrobots]

Hi I saw your old essay post from September 2024, back when the TF One film came out, and I just wanted to say I was one of the people who was very excited over the non-transforming model kits 😅 I did get my own! The big Optimus/Cogged Orion. I specifically wanted a toy that had a super accurate face to the movie and so I was happy that it existed.

I think the difference here is that as a collector of toys, I started out as a huge anime fan so I am very used to buying figurines that don't do anything in order to have the most screen accuracy - not even any articulation at all. As a new fan of TF, the fact that they don't transform doesn't bother me because I care more about what the character represents than something I can play with (though in this case you can because they're still very articulated, unlike anime figures besides figmas). I have a Yolopark "G1" mini non transforming Starscream model kit I got for $10 and I made him hold a tiny pride flag while pointing at me - I cared more about things like his face, wings, and overall accuracy to how I see Starscream in my mind (a silly little evil guy). I genuinely only cared about the fact that he looked very close to the cartoon for a cheap price. I have multiple transforming toys too, and they're fun, but since I don't transform them that often anyway (besides this $10 Galvatron I got that transforms in like less than a minute, I love fidgeting with him), I don't see one type of toy as better than the other.

This isn't really a rebuttal of your essay since your opinions are valid to your lived experiences, I just thought it was interesting how different our perspectives were for a few reasons - I am 21, and TF One was actually the first media I ever engaged with related to Transformers at all. I knew of the Michael Bay films but they didn't appeal to me at all when I was a child because they seemed totally mindless and sexist, and it wasn't until TF One that I even knew who ANY of the characters were (or that there were characters!?) beyond a vague concept of Optimus and Megatron - I went into it almost completely blind because they were promoting it with a free Sonic poster 😭. And it worked...since last September I have bought 7 toys and all of the Skybound comics...😅

I don't disagree that constant reboots and rehashes are definitely a symptom of capitalism (not wanting to lose trademarks, trying to maintain and create a new audience), and it's definitely kind of gross that there is that expectation that of course you should spend hundreds on our franchise - you grew up with it, right? But at the same time I actually kind of like that there are so many different versions of the same characters? I still get what you mean that there should still be a focus on creating new characters, of moving on, since I LOVED TF: The Movie. (Hot Rod/Rodimus is the best). If you haven't checked out the Skybound comics, they're definitely trying to rehash nostalgia with the character designs but they refuse to overly stick to overly used characters JUST for the sake of nostalgia and are willing to kill them off, including Bumblebee in the very first issue. Of course they might not be your thing anyway.

I also personally really loved the fact that Megatron and Optimus were friends first in TF One, and you could maybe attribute that to how I've seen very little superhero stuff, so instead of it seeming like an X-Men rehash it was totally fresh to me. (Well, mostly fresh, friends to enemies is pretty archetypal lol). I was...nine years old when X-Men: First Class came out, and my parents did not care for superheroes (I haven't seen a single Marvel movie and have only seen a few DC ones bc my friend's a fan for the first time last year), so I never even knew it existed until I saw people compare it to TF One. Planning to watch it soon, lol. The whole "OP and Megs were friends first" thing is very fanfiction-y, but if I'm being honest that's what I like about it... I never thought I would get so invested in robot slash but it's everywhere! And wonderful. (Sorry if that's something you dislike).

It isn't the only thing I like about the franchise: the sci-fi space opera vibe the 1986 film developed is awesome, and stuff that could only happen with robots like unique torture such as the "anti-personal mines" or empurata from IDW, the oppressive function based society also from IDW - TBH I think the Stalinist Megatron is cool...I mean like, fascist Megatron is fine (and I see TF One Megatron as a fascist), but the Megatron as a character I want to spend time thinking about and picking apart is the Megatron who wrote poetry and manifestos before being a war criminal, the universal greeting, what forms gender and recreational sex take in a society without sexual reproduction or sexual dimorphism - mostly a fanon thing obviously) but besides all that honestly...if it wasn't for the slash potential I probably wouldn't have gotten invested LMFAO. Yep. I'm just going to own it. I've had a great time with it. In my defense, I'm a lesbian! #representationmatters (Being very tongue in cheek right now)

Anyway...I'm sorry if none of that made any sense and also for the fact that I just sent you an incredibly unsolicited long af anonymous ask, but I just thought it was so fascinating that you couldn't enjoy TF One for completely valid reasons but those reasons could cause the opposite reaction in me (total obsession and fiscal irresponsibility). I feel like it stems from our age, what media we've seen do things better before (I am eager to experience new media but there is so much out there. I have lived under a strangely shaped rock!), and our approach to media in general probably differs which for me comes from a VERY self-indulgent place. Again, I sincerely apologize but I was glad to read your thoughts and I hope you didn't mind reading my own... Feel free to delete this ask!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Heh. No chance I'm deleting it, Anon - it's great to hear you're getting a start into Transformers like this.

And, first of all, while I've never been invested in TF slash to any degree, I am eternally delighted it exists. Likewise, I'm not particularly serious in my dislike of non-transforming action figures of Transformers except insofar as they lie entirely outside my own enjoyment. A lot of what I love about Transformers as a concept is the tactile thrill of turning a thing into another thing -- the idea each of them is a puzzle. It's partly the engineering challenge and partly just the satisfaction in fiddling with them, like you and that Galvatron. (This is also why I also have little good to say about overly complex and fiddly toys. There's definitely a sweet spot here.)

But that's beside the point. You want something out of your collecting that is different from me and I'm glad you've been able to get it. People liking or disliking things for much the same reasons is common. I don't feel like we're making the mistake of reading against the source material here; TF One just genuinely did something for you in ways it wouldn't for me!

Part of this is definitely age, as I tried to emphasise in the original essay. I'm at the point in my life where I really value novelty and I know where I am and am not likely to find it. I've spent the past few years exploring mecha anime as a category precisely because I hadn't before. While not all of it is new, it's new to me, and I've had a lot of fun as a result. See also Lupin (the French crime TV series), Dungeon Meshi, classic horror movies, and The Count of Monte Cristo. Doesn't always work out -- couldn't get on with Armored Core 6 because, turns out, there are reasons for me not to play games like that, namely I'm not good at them and don't find them fun. But it's ultimately on me to seek out novel things, rather than sitting around complaining the things I used to enjoy have changed or don't excite me any more.

It's fantastic you get to come in and experience Transformers for the first time, in all its many iterations. As I alluded to in the essay, that's kind what it was like for me in the early 2000s, picking my way through a mass of fiction that had come out over the preceding decade and a half. And you've got even more you can take a look at!

(The Michael Bay movies are indeed terrible, but Transformers: Bumblebee is pretty decent, if you want a live-action TF film.)

In terms of personal taste -- well, that's what it is, in the end, when it comes to liking or disliking particular versions. I don't like IDW Megatron because 1) it's a cludge, multiple different writers trying to salvage from the wreckage after early IDW got jackhammered by the 'All Hail Megatron' fiasco and 2) a lot of historical and political buttons it pushes in the name of a moral complexity don't sit well with me (this is more about where it leaves the Autobots than the Decepticons, although I do not like the idea of the 'cons starting in the working classes either, because the Constructicons are an outlier in Generation 1, not the norm *grumble grumble*). Other rants are available; when it comes to Transformers, I've had over twenty years to formulate very specific strong opinions!

Even so, again, someone liking the things I don't just means there's more enjoyment in the world, which is never a bad thing.

I'm still going to find nostalgia-farming icky. I'm still going to have critiques and complaints that I think are, occasionally, worth expressing in public. But I don't see these as any reflection on the people who feel otherwise, at least not outside certain extremes that don't factor into this discussion (when we get into shitty messages and horrible creative figures who benefit from people buying their stuff). Taste is a subjective thing and while it can be developed or refined, those are processes that should ultimately benefit each individual first and foremost. Nobody should be going round with a clipboard, rating us on the things we enjoy, 6/10, must do better. I try, likely with mixed success, to exercise caution over being critical on this blog. Ultimately, what I wrote last time was about business practices I find noxious, not the fans being targetted by them.

If you're getting joy out of TF:One and everything else, more power to you. Sincerely! I hope you'll continue to have fun and that you'll find other people who feel likewise.

Thank you for reading my post, and for sharing your thoughts in return. :)

[popculturebuffet]

Richard Moll Tribute: Batman TAS Review: Two-Face Parts 1 and 2 (Comission for WeirdKev27)

In Loving Memory of Richard Moll 1943-2023 Just one year. Just one damn year after loosing Kevin Conroy another treasured member of the Batman The Animated Series Cast passes. I wasn't expecting this and i'm hoping with all I got this isn't a trend.

While Kevin requested a tribute for Moll it was an easy request: While I sadly can't do a tribute for every tragic death as my schedule is packed, it's why poor Matthew Perry didn't get one even though his death is also truly gutting, but Moll is an actor I loved and still deeply repsect and I'm proud to honor him.

Ironically I first became a fan of Moll not thorugh two face, who I liked fine but wasn't really a faviorite of mine yet, but through his other famous roll that came before this: Baliff Bull Shanon on the NBC sitcom Night Court

If you haven't seen Night Court it's free on freevee and amazon prime so please do when your done here, but for the short version it was a sitcom about Harry Stone, a young judge who was both a goofy prankster and a kind, wise man who judged fairly and always tried to help his staff, played by the sadly also late Harry Anderson.

Bull was big, strong.. but also entirely kind and goofy. He had a childlike sense of wonder to him, missed the point often, but refrenshingly for a sticom he wasn't portrayed as a complete idiot, having a lot of emotinal intelgence. He was simply oblivious. And while VERY sweet he had a habit of reminding people, paitcuarly dan the court's prosectuer and sex pest, that he had his job for damn good reason. Moll was a treasure and never lost his step in the roll though sadly he declined to return for the recent revival and now never will.

So it suprised me when I found out Moll was Harvey all this time. It wasn't that Moll lacked talent or even him doing something after night court, he'd done plenty. It was more the range, perfectly playing Harvey in all the forms the show gave him: early on as bruce's pepppy friend, as a man grappling with his split personality in these episodes, as Harvey's brutal personality.. and later as a horrifying combo of the two as two face. All distinct, all using a diffrent vocal tone, all great.

So we're honoring his finest performance. So join me to remmeber Richard Moll under the cut as Harvey Dent grapples with the other person in the mirror.. and both become something else.

One touch i've always liked about Batman TAS is that Harvey was a recurring character before this two parter. It was only two episodes, On Leather Wings and Pretty Poison, but the former was a nice cameo to show he exists and the latter really showed off Harvey and Bruce's friendship, their easy report, the hint they had a long history we were never privy to, and it made the stakes higher when Harvey got poisoned by Ivy. It's remakrable how much legwork that one episode did to setting up this one. You can watch one without the other, Batman TAS is still largely episodic and one of the best shows ever at pulling that off... but the two enrich each other. While Batman TAS wasn't the first to try and have Harvey Dent around before he got faced, Batman 1989 ATTEMPTED it but then didn't bring back Billy Dee Williams and retconned Harvey to be Tommy Lee Jones because fuck me I guess, it's the work i'd credit with popularizing it as the Long Halloween and the Dark Knight after it made sure to show us who harvey was BEFORE, which makes what he becomes that much more tragic, that Bruce didn't just loose an ally.. he lost a friend.

It also makes what we see at the top of the episode have even more weight: Harvey having a troubled dream as he's harassed by a shadowy version of himself with a growly voice flipping a coin. Harvey is only freed from his nightmare by his assitant Carlos, who informs him the raid they've been planning is on boys.

The target is one of Rupert Thorne's gambling dens.

For those who've forgotten this guy, Rupert was the series mafia presence, head of Gotham's organized crime and slimeball, played by John Vernon aka the dean from animal house aka the character that inspired the dean from futurama. Rupert is the perfect arch enemy for a pre face harvey: it's easy to arrest a guy who kidnaps the police on christmas day after rocketing out of his aslyum on a christmas tree, it's harder to arrest someone who covers his tracks.

It's also hard because Throne's men have a bunch of high end weaponry stockpiled in there including grenade launchers. Thankfully Bat beats Grenade as bruce decided to pitch in to help with his buddy's relection campaign, helping clean house to make it easier on the police. I also like the touch of Harvey being ambivilant, not against Batman's presence but not really cordinating with him like Gordon would.

Unfortunately one of the goons makes the mistake of taunting harvey... and that wakes up the other person. As it turns out Harvey has Disociative Identity Disorder, and his alter, big bad harv, is all of the anger Harvey's surppressed his whole life condensed into a person. And Big Bad Harv suckers the goon before nearly beating him to death, with Harvey waking up from the episode horrified and making a lame excuse. As if things weren't tense enough Rupert Throne's decided to do a bit of digging into Harvey's life: he's become too big a thorn in his side and the irony's a bit too much to swallow on that, so he has Candice, his right hand minon look into that.

We cut to Harvey giving a speech at a big campaign rally Bruce is throwing. It also brings me to Batman The Animated Series Version of bruce who I like a lot: instead of playing up his uselessness or just barely using the identity when necessary, this bruce is a bruce wayne I like to see: a philamprohist who still fights to help people. It makes hiding he's batman harder sure.. but it shows Bruce more as another side of who he is rather than a mask he wears because society won't let him go around beating up people in a mask all day every day.

At the party is Grace, Harvey's girlfriend who wants to bump it up to fiance. It's unknown just HOW long it's been since pretty poison but given Harvey was willing to marry Ivy after a week, it's on brand for him to jump into life alterting decisions and he makes it clear he only hasn't because he's busy trying to get reelected, not getting that the engagment would probably bump up his raitings but whatever. Grace is mostly here so Harvey has more to loose. She's the weakest part of the episode, only being there so Harvey has a love intrest to weep at what he's become when we already have bruce. Though given this was the 90's I woudln't be shocked if Fox wanted to give Harvey a case of the not gays.... which come on. Why WOULDN'T it make sense for Two-Face to be BI-Sexual. It fits too well. Like Batman giving oral.

Every party needs a pooper though and the pooper for Harvey's party is a phone call: THrones men are being let go as someone "misfiled" a warrant.

So naturally out goes the good harvey, in comes the Big Bad Harvey who straight up THROWS his assitant carlos into an ice sculpture cleaving the thing in two.

And nearly beating BRUCE up this time when Bruce tries to calm him down. It's only grace begging him to stop that brings back standard Harvey.

Bruce didn't get to be the world's greatest detective by ignoring the obvious , so he goes to talk to harvey .And I absoutely LOVE Bruce's attitude in this scene.. the man was almost punched in the face by his best friend.. and instead of raging against him or recoling in horror he runs up to help him, recognizing this wasn't just harvey flipping out, but something deeper, correctly guessing Harvey has some sort of mental illness and needs help.

And as someone with some mental illnesses and a neurotypical brain not helping either of them, I really like how the episode treats Harvey's illness. The talk about it has aged REALLY well: While it was even MORE stigmatized back then, Bruce's reaction to all of this is recommend Harvey get help and then be utterly PROUD when he finds out Harvey already is doing the work, it's just taking time and the pressure of being a public figure AND hunting a crime lord really isn't helping. Harvey is treated as he should be: as a man who needs help and is struggling with it, not as some monster but as a man who simply needs help after a childhood trauma left him with an extra guest in his head. Harvey is never accused for what Big Bad Harv does and while Big Bad Harv's actions are seen as awful, as they should, no one ever blames Harvey for them if they know. It's something I struggle with: I also have big freakouts where I can't control myeslf. Diffrent type as i'm still ME when it happens, but I can still relate to this episode and harvey's struggle of both letting his pride down to ask for help and worrying about what people would think despite getting therapy being entirely normal.

Unforutnely Candice overheard this as we cut to Harvey in sessoin with his psychatrist, Nora Crest. Nora is a wonderful therapist, helping harvey slowly and making it clear what Big Bad Harv does isn't his fault. She also draws BBH out to try and help manage him better. Unfortunately.... she fails to recognize that Big Bad Harv dosen't WANT to be managed, want to be locked away, or want Harvey to come back again and in the most horrifying display yet trashes Nora's office, breaks a window and tries to attack her before she undoes the hypnosis. Again it's done well as Nora simply misunderestimated HOW bad things were and while sh'es trying her best.. .as she puts it Harvey NEEDS to check himself into a hospital. And I love how that's not portrayed as a bad thing: A dire circumstance, but we've seen how bad harv is. She's not suggesting locking him up in arkham or anything drastic, she just wants him where he can get help and where big bad harv can't hurt people.

Ultimately what holds Harvey back... is a combination of pride and society itself. In a better world Harvey going in to get treatment after two public outbursts would be seen as a heroic act and he'd win the election. Sadly we don't live in that world and Harvey correctly fears the voters would just sterotype him as crazy and he'd loose the election. He TRIES to mitgate it by having more sessions an da reduced work schedule and it works to a point.. but it's clear it's putting a band-aid on an open wound.

This meatball mental surgery DOES enough to get Harvey through the election, and almost to propose to grace.. but sadly dosen't last as Thorne has stolen his medical files and wants a meeting. Once again it's not Harvey that's the issue.. it's that society won't accept that he NEEDS help and it's OKAY to get it. And Throne's all too happy to exploit it.

Thankfully for Harvey his best friend is batman, so Bruce is able to follow Harvey and put a tracker on the car he's taken in. Thorne makes the BOLD decision to confront the man whose DiD is shown to be triggered by extreme stress... in a remote room with only a few guards, only one of them actually armed, and mock his mental illness. We also find out WHY Harvey has DiD: as a kid he hit a bully in the face. Said bully wound up in the hospital and Harvey blaming himself vowed never to be angry again. Turns out it was apendcitis. Hence Big Bad Harv.

And unfortuantely for Harvey's future and Throne's present.... Big Bad Harv comes out. He does manage most of the thugs, with some bat help, but given whose origin this is.. you know this can't end well. And it dosen't: in a truly gutting moment Harvey rushes after Throne, the goon from earlier tries to fire.. and in stopping the guy batman accidently directs his fire at a power coupling in the factory, causing an explosion. Harvey Dent as we knew him .. is gone.

Some time later Harvey's in the hospital in bad shape, with doctors promising they'll restore him with plastic surgery. Instead... we get

I know he was heavily burned, and that his face would be hard to fix.. but how did you think "make him look like a blue goblin man with a bigger eye on half his face" was EVER going to go down well. Does oscorp own this hospital?

While I joke, because i'm a goofy bastard, I do love the nod to Batman 89, with Harvey asking for a mirror in the same way as Jack Napier and Lisa Simpson... only instead of laughing he throughs a raging fit and then gapes in horror when his new visage makes his fiance pass out.

So thus ends part one. One last thing I want to note is how LITTLE batman is in this. Ther'es an action bit with bruce at the beginning of the episode and later at the climax. That's it. It's something TAS did a lot, having a more methodical build up before the third act is all I AM THE NIGHT, but it feels diffrent here as we aren't WITH bruce for most of the episode. He's still present and important to the plot, but he's a supporting character in Harvey Dent's story. There's no breaking things down with alfred, no break from the tragedy of Harvey Dent, and it's why the episode works so well. This isn't a Batman story yet.. it's Harvey Dents.

Part 2, naturally, splits time between both men as both go on their own journey. It's 6 months later and the man who was once Harvey dent has abandoned his old names: No more Harvey Dent, upstanding DA or Big Bad Harv, Harvey Dent's anger and hatred given shape and form... the two have merged. It's something I never noticed before till tv tropes pointed it out: Fitting his dual nature Two Face is a bit of both: he's aggressive, rageful, and quick to anger, berating his twin thugs when they go off script. He'd of killed them by now but damn can they belt a cover of Don't Pull Your Love

Yet we see a tactical side that just wasn't present in Big Bad Harv.. but was in harvey, with the raid being his idea and his attacks on thorne being calculated, using every bit of info on his operations Harvey ever aquiried but going outside a law he no longer belivies in. Two-Face is a new personality.. and a fairly haunted one.

He also naturally now has his gimmick, using coin flips to decide his decisions, hence why he hasn't seen grace in a while as the coin keeps telling him no. After all he lost, after all that happened he now belivies only in chance... the only justice left. And given the system allowed thorne to thrive while Harvey sacrficed his health, his time and ultimately who he was to stop him only to get nowhere.. it's hard not to see why.

It's what, once again, makes this work: it's not just Harvey's DiD that turned him into Two-Face. IT's the main cause, sure, but the regular Harvey still had an obessive, vengeful streak about him: he may of locked his anger away.. but he still hunted thorne, obessed over the case and put beating thorne over his own well being. Being DA was important, beating thorne was important.. but it wasn't worth loosing himself. He was doing the work, had he taken his doctor's advice and checked himself in.. Harvey may of been okay. He wouldn't of had the office but he'd have his mind and the love of his life. Now only rage and a determinatoin to destroy thorne remain.

Thorne naturally isn't taking this sitting down. He has some shit to throw around in anger dammit. After months of Two Face hitting him hard then fading away into the night he puts out a bounty: a million a face. And Cadance, being sneaky and what not, sets her self on the path to the moolah by pretending to be a cop and giving grace a tracker.

Meanwhile Bruce, naturally, is also doing pretty bad. In his dreams Harvey cries out to bruce asking "Why couldn't you save me?"... and Bruce has no answer.. nor one when his own father asks "WHy couldn't you save us son?" Once again Bruce has lost someone he cares about. And while with his parents the guilt isn't warranted, it was a random gunman and he wa sa children, you can see WHY he has it here: You can just feel Bruce replaying the moment he tackled the gunman, again, and again and again, thinking of all the ways he coudl've done it BETTER, all the ways that don't end in Harvey becoming Two Face. All the ways he should be BETTER. We know it was just an accident but Bruce.. can't accept it. He has to fix this, he has to save harvey from himself.

Harvey's decided enough fucking around. He's gotten Thorne weak enough, it's time for the killing stroke. Only Harvey isn't being THAT merciful: he COULD kill Thorne, but like any good super villian Twoey has a sense of irony: Thorne ruined his life and reputation, it's only fair Two-Face do the same

So TF and his minons raid a place where THorne has his most secure files, the ones that outline everything. YOu know your standard maffia macguffin. Bruce naturally shows up ... but tragically he can't help someone who dosen't want to be helped, a harsh lesson of the episode: Harvey is buried deep within two face, impossibly tangled with big bad harv. There's the possiblity he could become harvey again, but he has to want to. But all that's left in harvey is a want for revenge.

Batman does at least spot a pattern: all the clubs and establishments are two themed, and thus finds his hideout, Club Deuce. Unfortunately he's not the only one as Two Face finally decides to see Grace, who thinks the police would be genuinley invested in the health of someone with a mental illness

And triggers the signal. Grace almost gets through to harvey who starts out wearing.. this

Grace takes it off, almost convinces him to get help.. then Thorne busts in

Thorne manages to ransom grace so he can get the files.. and then plans to just shoot everybody because Two Face was stupid to trust him. Thankfully it's time for the bat to make his big entrance, and our hero, villian protagnist and cardboard cutout clean house. Well okay Grace takes out Candance as is standard catfight protocol, but props to her for contributing.

It ends with Thorne in a chadelear and Harvey about to finish this. Bruce begs Two Face not to as there's no coming back from this.... but Two Face dosen't trust int he law anymore and Batman certainly hasn't finished off this son of a bitch, so he plans to play count the bullets.

How Batman stops him.. is creative as it is heartbreaking. When Two Face flips.. batman dumps a bunch of other silver dollars, stolen earlier in the ep, in. Two Face is paralized.. and Batman and Grace are left to mourn what they've lost. The episode ends somberly. No one won here: Thorne is still out there, Harvey is in arkham.. and all bruce can do is flip a coin himself into a wishing fountain.. and HOPE his friend can one day recover. It's all he has left, the same cruel fate his friend is now servant to.

So as you can tell Two-Face is a banger two parter and one of Batman TAS' best. Moll is spellbinding the whole damn time, playing all three versions of harvey perfectly, while Kevin Conroy gets some graet acting himself in both acts, as Bruce trying to be supportive.. and as the Bat desperately trying to save his friend. It's tight, gripping and a masterpiece. Check it out now, thanks for reading.. and rest in piece Richard. Thanks for giving us so much joy, so much sorrow.. and so much of you