#there are things behind the scenes that've been taking up more time

[a-leg-without-fear]

I'M NOT DEAD!!!!

i have been working on my mental health/the big fic coming out at the end of the month. i PROMISE i haven't forgotten tuna tober, OR any of the other series i have on my page. to help remedy the lack of content, i've been uploading more things to my redbubble!!! feel free to give it a look if you so choose :) i love you all SO FUCKING MUCH!!! thank you for supporting my work and just generally enjoying my content.

[primal-con]

@fanficmaniatic Literally exactly, I can't stop thinking about this?? And like there'd be so much narrative potential if the writers didn't keep fuckin demoting/sidelining Jazz at best or outright ignoring him!

Cause here's the thing, no Decepticon is more terrified of anyone than they are of Jazz, not even Optimus in some cases and the same can be said for Soundwave. There's borderline horror stories passed around about both of them. And we see that multiple times throughout several continuities! There's literally a scene in Cyberverse where all the Decepticons get taken down and Optimus is more afraid that someone managed to disable Soundwave than anyone else, including Megatron. And every Decepticon knows if Jazz is there to kill you you'll never even see him coming, his reputation is unparalleled.

And they both do the same things, like they work in the same field and are known for their intel, obviously they know about each other's work so there's gotta be some level of mutual professional respect there. Like they both recognize the other as their only equal essentially because there's no one else on either side who's skill in lurking behind the scenes can really compare.

Hell, Soundwave has that whole rivalry thing with Soundblaster and even then he doesn't recognize Blaster as his equal, he explicitly thinks of himself as the better of the two.

So basically they do the same thing in different ways and they're the only ones that can match the other's skill at it.

Then on a more personal level, they also parallel each other because like I said, they're basically the same person in different directions? Because Soundwave is shown to be the most loyal, by-the-books Decepticon who'd do anything for the cause, but he's also incredibly loyal in a more personal respect too. He either couldn't care less about you or he'd die for you, as we've seen with his cassettes. There's literally no one else he cares about more than them and he's hellbent on protecting them. He's ruthless but he's also endlessly compassionate towards those that've endeared themselves to him.

As opposed to Jazz who's explicitly a terrible Autobot. Like he's the second in command and instrumental to the cause but he breaks the rules all the time, it's basically his job. Whereas Soundwave prays on people's fear of him to gain intel, Jazz prays on people's trust towards him. He puts up this pleasant facade that people can relax around but he's secretly incredibly capable and generally very dark. He's willing to break his own rules and sacrifice his own morals to get the job done. He's kind to people but it's more of a mask than anything else, his actions in the field reflect his own deadly tendencies much more starkly.

So you've got these two people nearly matched in rank and skill who take on opposite personas for the same goal. Both are incredibly fierce and deadly and highly feared but they're also intelligent, compassionate, and willing to do whatever it takes to stand up for what they believe in. One's viewed as ruthless and has to hide his kindness and one's viewed as kind and has to hide his ruthlessness. And what you get is these two characters that probably understand each other better than anyone else but who never really get access to that understanding because they're on opposite sides of this war.

A musical warframe made to hate his own music because of the way it's been weaponized and twisted into something violent by war and a civilian who learned to love music as an escape from the violent and war torn person he's become. The same person in opposite directions. It is literally driving me crazy.

Ugh, thinkin about… Jazz and Soundwave narrative parallels. The most loyal and compassionate Decepticon vs the most ruthless and morally grey Autobot, among the most respected and feared of their respective factions. Opposing musical motifs and mastermind spy vs hands on spy and the way they’re practically like… the same person but in opposite directions?? Idk I’m having feelings, I feel like I could write a whole essay on these two skfjs