#transformers unicron SPOILERS

[wildstreak]

Yeah, okay, someone is going to tell me that 'Starscream has always been destined for this ending, as determined by countless plot-based evidence' and by all means, I respect that

BUT I, IN ALL MY DELUSIONAL GLORY, WILL FOREVER BELIEVE THAT STARSCREAM ONLY DECIDED TO GO DOWN THIS SELF-SACRIFICAL ROUTE IN THE SPLIT SECOND THAT HIS TRINE GOES OUT

BECAUSE THERE IS NO WORLD WORTH LIVING IN WHEN THEY ARE NOT AT LEAST ALIVE SOMEWHERE, SAFE AND SOUND

This trio does things to me, man

'I've got a brother to save'? 🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧

[krockdove]

TFone spoiler but a some of a headcanon post:

Megatronus Prime's T-Cog is the only one that is purple, unlike the others. It would be very ironic if the reason for this was because of his resemblance to Unicron, as in the Aligned continuity. His original connection to Unicron was due to the fallen setting, while TFone Megatronus is a truly great and tragic hero.

So think he was a beloved superbaby, born with the best of both Gods, Primus and Unicron, that would make a pretty cute and sad thing. He was very dedicated to his fellow Prime and loved by them. It's a shame he met such a miserable end.

[travs316]

DECEPTICONS! RISE UP!

I DID THE THING ‼️

[solarkindred]

I love you my dear, i love our time here //

life would be so much worse if you had died (just let me close my eyes) //

please stay away from harm, stay in my open arms

- Love in Paradise, EPIC: The Musical

[transingthoseformers]

I genuinely believe Unicron will be the end villain of Earthspark after the Quintessons. This is mostly because of these little facts:

Quintus was clearly making allies for the Transformers in case Unicron ever reared his ugly head again

There's been a lot of references to the 1986 movie throughout the series from that Touch reference to the Quintessons to the war ending around the same time the movie was set (2006?)

Chaos energy is sounding a little bit like Angolmois energy which is basically Unicron energy

Also the importance on Prime relics, and the loss of one, which I feel is going to wake up Unicron to feed

Exactly exactly, and I feel like it's going to be fascinating

[authoratmidnight]

Ok, I need to ramble about Transformers One. Cause it was just so good and I have thoughts.

I just don't know where to begin lol.

Cause it was just, so good!

Like, this seems like, the only time we get a full, proper backstory for what happened between Optimus Prime and Megatron to turn them from friends to enemies.

I'm only familiar with a couple of TF continuities (Prime, Animated-tho it's been a hot minute on that one- a smattering of comic stuff and the live action movies), and while they do bring up that OP and megs had a history, were even friends at one point, they never go into what happened to sour that friendship. What made Megs change, how did they end up on opposite sides of the war?

But TF One DOES! And it's GOOD!

AND IT'S UNDERSTANDABLE!

(under the cut for length)

I've seen a few people say that D-16 'went mad with power' or 'turned bad' the moment he got a T Cog but. He didn't. It wasn't hat tabrupt. If anything it can be summed up with one phrase.

"The straw that broke the camel's back."

Like. Put yourself in his boots. All your life you've been essentially the dregs of society, looked down upon b/c you were born without a crucial element of yourself. You work a generally thankless, extremely dangerous job. But, it's all worth it you think. You job is the backbone of your city, it's providing for the city and it's people until your protector and saviour can find the missing relic. You have hope that things will get better. You can bear it after all.

And then in one fell swoop your entire life and world view is upended. It was all a lie.

Your "protector" is a traitor, a murder, a liar. He killed your protectors (and your biggest hero), betrayed you to your enemies and is bowing to them. All the stuff you've been mining turns out to be going to your enemy. You haven't been helping your fellow citizens, you've been aiding the enemy. And then, the cherry on the shit sundae is to find out that he ALSO is responsible for you being "defective", as he (basically) mutilated your infant form, taking away what makes you you. You've followed the rules all your life. You've accepted your lot in life no matter how much it sucked.

And it was all a LIE.

That is one hell of a betrayal to be slammed on you all at once. SO yeah, the straw that broke the camel's back. Sometimes, people just fucking snap.

And then the camel got the power to actually fucking do something about it.

He didn't go mad with power or instantly go evil when he got a T Cog. He just finally had a way to DO something now. He didn't have to settle for being pushed around any more. Following the rules had gotten him this so, fuck them Fuck the rules man.

And the thing is, D-16 and Orion DID have the same goal in a way. They wanted to bring Sentinel to justice. They just had different ways to go about doing it.

Orion wanted to do it the "right" way, to expose him and have him stripped of his title/power and be tried for his crimes. He wanted to follow the logical route.

And D-16 just wanted revenge. He followed the emotional route.

"I want him dead"

Can you blame him? I don't. His anger is totally justified.

I wouldn't call that him 'suddenly going evil'. It was just the tipping point. After that moment he just slid off the deep end and kept spiraling downwards. If anything the 'gone evil' moment was when he looked at Orion and said "I'm done saving you". At that point it was to late. That was where D-16 died. (and one could argue that was the moment where Orion Pax died as well. b/c the bots that emerged from that fight were not D-16 and Orion Pax. It was Megatron and Optimus Prime)

But like, he didn't go mad with power. He was just on a revenge mission and now had the ability to DO that. And like, a revenge mission doesn't necessarily make someone evil (Inigo Montoya says hello)

And the thing is, they were both right imo.

Orion Pax was right, starting off your new society with an execution is proooobably not a good look (plus the whole debate on do you have the right to decide who lives and dies?). But like, D-16 was right that Sentinel needed to pay for his crimes and rotting in jail really seems like a slap on the wrist for what he did, for the betrayal and murder and lying and mutilation.

Also like. If he hadn't killed him, someone else would have. Someone else would have had the same mindset as D-16, that sitting in jail wasn't punishment enough for a life of betrayal and lies and would have found him an exacted their justice. If not D-16, then someone else.

It's just. It's so good man.

And how they basically switch their viewpoints as the story progresses. It starts out with Orion as the 'fuck the rules' sort of guy, he wants to do what he want, and D-16 as the by the book, follow the rules one. And as it goes on you see that changing. Orin wants to end this the right way, the proper way. And D-16 just throws the rules out the window b/c clearly those have gotten him nothing. And by the time they become Optimus Prime and Megatron, they've essentially switched viewpoints. Megatron has no care for the rules or laws, where as Optimus by comparison does.

Is Sentinel a basic ass villain? Yeah sure but lbr we're not here watching the movie for him. We're here for the doomed friendship between Orion and D-16, to see how they become Optimus and Megatron. That's what *I* was here for lol. So I don't really care if he's a basic ass bitch. Besides, he's dead by the end anyways so. Not enough to hamper my enjoyment of it.

And him being predictable as a villain isn't even a bad thing. Yeah, I clocked early one that he was sus (let's be real, anyone who has Airachnid as their right hand can't possibly be a good person lol), tho not exactly why he was sus. I had been leaning more towards either a) he HAD found the Matrix of Leadership and just didn't want to say he had/couldn't use it and/or was just fucking around up on the surface. But predictability isn't a bad thing (plus it seems like he has been used as an antagonist in previous incarnations so anyone familiar w/ the character would see it coming). There's no original tropes, so ofc it's gonna reuse known ones. And that's fine. He's the power hungry one here.

On that note, the inherent tragedy of the story. If you know anything about Transformers, then you're going into this movie knowing that, no matter how it ends there IS a tragedy to it. And if you don't know anything (yes, people like that exist) then you're unprepared for the tragedy that unfolds between the two leads.

Cause if you're not familiar w/ Transformers you're not likely to be expecting the two lead friends to end up split apart and on opposing factions by the end. Usually the leads end up making up by the end. But they don't. They can't.

And if you are familiar then you're just sitting, watching this friendship break apart and knowing that nothing could change this outcome. It was always going to end this way. And that's the tragedy of it.

On the technical side of things, it looks really really good! I think my favourite animations are the seemingly ever moving rock formations on the surface of Cybertron, the shimmering black rock that seems to grow and move across the land. Like daaaaaamn.

And I can't really complain about the voices. I think they work. Yeah it's not the og voice actor but like, it makes sense. This ISN'T Optimus and Megatron, it's Orion Pax and D-16. They're younger, smaller, they're different. So naturally they are gonna sound different. Plus it makes that gradual voice change into their voices all the more impactful.

I was however expecting to see Megatron rip out Bee's voice box during the big fight at the end to finally shut him up. Since that is a staple of Bee at this point. But he did not so I suppose that is being saved for another movie/story. Just to make us get more attached to Bee and his voice.

Oh and the movie is fucking hilarious and they balance the humour out really well imo.

Like I said. I fucking love this movie.

Also can we just, take a moment to acknowledge the fucking carnage in this PG rated movie??? Like, geezus, the number of characters that get brutally sliced up, blown up, losing limbs, stabbed/speared and of course, Sentinel getting literally ripped in half. But since there's no blood (and they aren't humans) it's totally fine and ok in a PG rated movie. Absolutely wild man. Movie was a damn blood bath in that final fight.

[melishade]

thoroughly enjoyed the chapter, getting a good time table on events I thought It was linear but him jump around makes it interesting. Interesting choice in making vector as a vehicle of being all knowing instead of Primus and wow all the problems could have been resolved if they kept cool with the Frieda and Grisha situation. Wonder what the what if for that. Primus being inspired by both grisha and armin was a nice touch.

also this chapter being a solution for the repeated ‘ask’ you get like Optimus 2.0 form and shockwave disappear. Like ha! Made it to lore! Deal with it

Over all looking forward to the end

Chapter 98

I figured that I'd use this chapter to answer some of the questions that people have been asking me for years.

But this chapter was also fun because it allowed me to expand upon my own interpretations of Primus and the Primes. How they act, how they handle and respond to certain situations. I knew that I wanted to write this OVA out of sequence, making Primus go out of order in these memories because it's a new environment, he just woke up, etc.

And Primus is still an all-knowing deity, but in the OVA, I wanted to emphasize how Primus valued unity, cooperation, and kindness. If he wanted to, he could just do everything himself. He has the power to, especially since he and Unicron come from the same entity, but he values the input of his creation and teamwork because he believes that different minds and different people can lead to more progress. Not to mention, Vector has been isolating himself in his own pocket dimension, monitoring the flow of time and making alterations wherever they need to be. Of course he would have more knowledge compared to the other Primes. Compared to Primus? Maybe because he was out for a good portion of the war.

That doesn't mean that Primus isn't without flaws, as he and the other Primes let their anger get to the best of them and inadvertently cause Grisha to kill the royal family. So oof.

In regards to the conversation between Armin and Primus, and Armin's ultimate influence on Primus, was something that I've had planned for a while. I've brought it up in conversation with @justawannabearchaeologist and @echoblaze5 that out of all the AOT cast, Armin would be the one who is the most qualified to be a Prime. And I knew that it had to be Armin that called out Primus for his own failings and ideology. It was the only one that made sense. All the others snapped at Primus because of their hatred for him, or because they were backed into a corner. Armin did it because he genuinely believed in the world that he was fighting for. Armin, who's been compared to Orion Pax. Armin, who's somehow managed to influence Megatron to become a better person. Armin, who despite seeing the cruelty of the world, still believes that there can be peace. Armin, who despite seeing the destruction of the Rumbling, still believes in a sight beyond the hell.

Because no matter how many times Armin has stared darkness in the face, he didn't blink. He didn't waiver. He didn't buckle. He still continued to push forward to find a better future. Armin chooses to rise above his station and become more while also considering the freewill of others. It is Armin's words and Primus' willingness to listen that allow for Primus to take such a drastic leap and integrate himself into Cybertronian society.

Grisha's role is more indirect if anything. Primus saw how much Grisha had changed and applauded him for it. He regrets letting his emotions get the better of him and causing Grisha to kill that family, and makes it up to him by granting him a moment with Zeke. But Primus has seen Grisha's memories and how he's helped the Walls through medicine, never once using his knowledge to kill but to help, while trying to complete the mission of the Jaegerists. Grisha gives Primus a solution as to how he can help his children without causing damage to their free will.

It was still very fun to write the OVA, and I'm glad I was able to get to it.

[thewiglesswonder]

SO HOW ARE WE FEELING ABOUT THAT TRAILER HUH.

[tachyon-omlette]

okay before I lose my thought (MASSIVE Rise of the Beasts spoilers re: Unicron)

in my opinion rotb handled Unicron perfectly.

when I first watched the full trailer & saw Unicron my second thought was "oh no" (my first being "YOOOOOO") because in the bumblebee-rotb timeline it seemed extremely early to be involving him. I went into the movie almost resigning myself to the thought that it would end with Unicron being destroyed & never seen again, because he was advertised as the main Big Bad.

but the truth is, Scourge was the main Big Bad. and while Unicron made several appearances and had more than one line, the primary thing he did was loom over the narrative like the slow approach of death - he did more than haunting the narrative, I think, but aside from his interactions with the Terrorcons and his arrival at the final scene, he was largely uninvolved in the main conflict, and was in the end defeated momentarily rather than destroyed.

what we did see of him was always displays of power: the destruction of the Maximals' homeworld, his ability to supply the battlefield with endless Terrorcon footsoldiers, his mindscape-meeting with Scourge wherein he tortured Scourge for failing him from Primus knows how far away. hell, even Scourge, Battletrap, and Nightbird themselves were living proof of Unicron's power - ruthless, near-invincible supersoldiers who've killed enough Cybertronians and Cybertronian-adjacent lifeforms to steal and wear their badges like a bounty hunter collects trophies. on-screen all of this is done through Unicron's power, the extension of his will - and not, notably, by Unicron himself.

this wasn't Unicron's moment to shine, only to be destroyed so early in the narrative.

this was the moment that painted a target on Earth, and on Optimus Prime. this was the moment that established how Unicron is accustomed to taking thralls from other worlds while also killing off the ones he already had, laying the potential groundwork for Galvatron or even Sideways. this was the moment that showed off just how powerful Unicron and his allies are without cramming it into the first fifteen minutes of another movie down the line, and when he appears again we'll already know just how fucked the protagonists are.

this was the setup to Unicron's moment to shine. though I'd hoped Unicron would get more screentime, rotb ultimately handled Unicron with the severity he deserves; for that, it was perfect.

sidenote: I got very big "then perish" vibes at the end of the movie, when Unicron said smth like "think about this, Prime. I could give you anything you want." and Optimus responded with "then DIE!!". it was dramatic in the moment but remembering it got me a good laugh

[brobotsbro]

Just saw Rise of the Beasts!

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS!!!! And horniness ahead

OMG OPTIMUS WAS SO HOT I WANTED TO EAT THAT MAN A L I V E

So hot. So hot. Oh my god when he ducked to go through a doorframe I nutted. That's my man he's so fucking hot.

Interesting character choice to make Optimus distrusting of the humans and growing to trust them over the course of the movie.

I did NOT expect Bee to die THAT SOON. I thought that was gonna be an endgame thing but nope!!!! But he got better and his return was to Mama Said Knock You Out and it was AWESOOOOOOME

Unicron looked fucking AWESOME. and when he appeared and Scourge was talking to him UNICRONS THEME FROM THE 1986 MOVIE PLAYED IM!!!!!!!!!;;

cyclonus was a girl?? At least she had a female voice. I don't know if they gave her a different name it was hard to hear but it was Cyclonus EDIT: apparently it is not Cyclonus, it is a character named Nightbird? Idk, I thought she looked a lot like Cyclonus from the 1986 movie ¯\_(ツ)_/

They should have just given wheeljack a different name he looked, sounded and acted nothing like wheeljack. They should have just made a name up for him.

The Maximals looked so good omg, tho I wish they'd been in their humanoid alt modes for longer than the final battle when I didn't get to have a good look at them. Their entrance was awesome the first time tho!!! The rhino!!!!

Near the end when the boy Noah donned his Mirage suit and it was like imma fight Scourge I did have to suspend my disbelief like no hon there's no way. But then my MANS came sliding in like I got u and I was like AAAAAA

and him holding Optimus from being sucked in to the air displacement from Unicron disappearing .....ultra suspension of disbelief but it sure looked cool!! And they all said "till all are one" and it was super corny but thats ok lmao

-Unicron: don't do it prime I'll give you everything you want!!!

-Optimus: then DIE

HOT

It was so good!!!!!

THE GI JOE TIE IN AT THE END IVE NEVER BEEN INTO GI JOE BUT I CAN BE BITCH

[oneheadedcerberus]

So with Mandroids Sharkticons and he mentioned liberating their planet from blah blah blah, season 2 of Earthspark gonna be the Quintessons orrrrr???

[krockdove]

Oh, the cave with teeth from TFONE is known as "Unicron's mouth" on a trade card released in China. What does this mean?

Also weird thing is that the cave was the rendezvous point. I wonder if Sentinel had another reason for calling the 13 Primes there. Perhaps even more so if the Quintessens had chosen the location, not just his will.

I don't think the cave's actually a Unicron, bcs it's too small, and I think it was the corpse of a Dweller as many people said. Maybe it's called that because it looks like a Unicron, or maybe in this continuity, the Dwellers are Unicron's minions. The latter would be interesting, especially considering that the cave is covered with tons of organic life.

If the Dweller used Unicron's Dark Energon, and it has something to do with the creation of the ecosystem, then Unicron is likely the core of the Earth in this continuity. And remember the abandoned structures near. I'm suspicious of its proximity to the cave.

Maybe it was a facility for researching the connection between the dark energon and organic life. Maybe it's where the Quintessons were created. That structures were built a long time ago, and the facility may have been abandoned throughout the war and forgotten about. Quintessons usually attacked for energon, so 13 Primes may have decided that it's not much dangerous. However, the Quintessons may have found the place where they were first born and decided to attack and destroy the Primes from there. Not only strategic, also intentional.

[sparrowsabre7]

So I guess Unicron appearing in "Rise of the Beasts" and being described as bigger than a planet means "Bumblebee" and ROTB MUST be a different universe, despite Bumblebee having the same voice issue and Sector Seven and Simmons being a thing, because in "The Last Knight" Unicron was... well... Earth.

[shychangling]

That scene between Optimus and Unicron in Rise of the Beast was there for me and me alone

I am not normal and I refuse to be normal

[transingthoseformers]

I've been thinking about the bots who've been left behind on Cybertron, and haven't had the context of what went down to end the war on earth

(though, based on the information s3 gave us, it seems like the war has semi ended on Cybertron too without both sets of high command) (though, like in a surprising amount of series, even after the war is officially over autobots and decepticons are still fucking fighting)

(the end of the war is never REALLY the end of the war, is it?)

[lupinus-bicolor]

I kind of enjoy the theory that the Terrans run on Unicron juice, considering the aligned continuity has the whole "earth is unicron" thing, but something pokes a hole in that, which is that earthspark is mainly a g1 based continuity where Unicron is a separate body like in the '86 movie, even if both universes do share the Cybertron/primus equivalence. You could probably point to the fact that quintus prime and the lore behind the original 13 was only established in Aligned and use that to justify the dark energon theory but I think it has more to do with quintus prime and his emberstone than with Unicron. I bet that's emberstone juice in that cave and not dark energon