#when they actually are making a valid point and the hero has some moral drift to confront? YES.

[shadeswift99]

YOU GET IT, this is exactly how I feel about - wait hang on

Also for the ask game: "you and I are not so different after all" type parallels drawn between a villain and a main character? (As in, when it is implied by the narrative or outright suggested by one of them they they are essentially pursuing the same type of goal with the same methods, just with different framing)

B by virtue of it being a Very High C -- i fucking love this trope so goddamn much but, like, the villain and the narrative both have to earn that, and if they don't then it's the most obnoxious thing in the world

however, when it's done well (and lucky for me, a lot of the time it is) then it's very tasty and i enjoy it a great deal. then again i'm a TIZ Team enjoyer i don't know why this'd be a surprise to you ;P

[stxleslyds]

You always seem down on the idea of the Batfam. I mean, it is hard to take seriously when writers make Bruce hostile or downright abusive towards his kids, or when Batfam members never interact. But do you think the concept itself is good, and it's just been the victim of bad writing? Or do you think the Batfam is a bad idea that can never work?

Hi there Anon! Thank you for the ask!

Hmm, this is a difficult question. Maybe I can answer this better if I do it in parts because the concept of “Batfamily” is used in different ways currently. A way to separate them can be, DC’s Batfamily, Fandom’s Batfamily and Fandom’s Batfamily lore being introduced in comics’ canon.

DC’s Batfamily:

My rejection of this version of Batfamily comes from all angles, it is not a good concept within comics lore anymore, it’s badly written and used to hide and move on from truly horrendous actions done by Bruce towards the rest of the family, and DC uses the concept of “Batfamily” that fandom has become so attached to, so they can profit off of it without writing anything of real essence with it.

Why did I say that the Batfamily isn’t a good concept anymore? Well, because the Batfamily that I first came across in comics included, Bruce, Dick, Alfred, Barbara, Tim and Cassandra. It was rather small and their books interconnected and had pretty solid relationships with one another. Dick and Tim got along and spent time together, Barbara mentored Cass so she could become Batgirl and so on and so forth. The family was smaller and more connected. But they still had problems and bad habits then. So, I liked them as a group of people that worked together and the name they received was “Batfamily” as a way for DC to profit from it.

Right now, the Batfamily is huge, I don’t know if you have seen those splash pages with all the members of it for Rebirth and Infinite Frontier, but those promotional pages were crazy big, characters like Harley and Clownhunter are now considered part of the “Batfamily” and all that. Then there is the kind of characters like Cass, Steph and Kate who are all connected to Batman but that haven’t been appearing in books for very long, so putting them on that page really feels like DC is trying to prove that their “Batfamily” actually has women on it, but it’s just for show.

And then there is Dick, Jason, Tim and Damian, the most recognizable faces of the Batfamily aside from Bruce and Alfred (but Alfred is dead now so he doesn’t really count), all of them have had issues with Bruce or are indifferent to the existence of one another. Yes, Tom Taylor has included Tim in Dick’s book but here is the thing, it feels like he put him there just to make fans shut up about the lack of content with both of them acting as they used to do. But its false and lazy, Taylor just brought Tim to the book but we don’t get to see Tim and Dick interact in ways that can explain why they drifted off, it kinda seems like all those years where Dick and Tim were pulled apart never happened to DC and that makes me think “cash grab”. I would have loved to see them interact again if it meant that we would have some solid story for them to develop their relationship once more.

At the end of Rebirth, Damian was pissed off at Bruce and they had a fight and Damian left the manor completely. Bruce beat up Jason, then gave him a hug but still told him that he was banned from Gotham and all that abuse and manipulation was swept under the rug when DC came out with Urban Legends: Cheer, all they did with that story is lie and made-up stories about Jason wanting Bruce to go on a killing spree so Gotham can finally be the home to his beloved family (lies, lies, lies).

On top of all that we have the neglect, abuse and manipulation that Bruce had going on with Dick, ever since Bruce manipulated Dick into joining Spyral his actions haven’t faced any consequences (the family still believes that Dick was the one who lied about dying). And as recently as the end of Rebirth, Dick suffered from a head injury that left him amnesiac and Bruce absolutely didn’t care enough to look after him when he was so vulnerable and alone. DC had the audacity of having Bruce say that he was looking after Dick while Dick went from one villain manipulating and hurting him to another, and if we look at Batman’s run, we can see that he spent some of that time in a weird pit or playing catch the pussy with Selina in a tropical island.

So, taking all those things into account, I honestly believe that the Batfamily is a concept that absolutely does not belong in comics. If it were to be taken seriously then DC should come up with (organic, not forced) stories that make these characters connect once again, but they have to be careful, just because they can connect it doesn’t mean that everyone gets along and they have group chats and eat dinner together of Fridays, that would be a blatant lie and just too out there for their kind of dynamic, so, they should take things slow, start re-building what once was an make it better (if they want to make it work and feel like less of a cash grab).

I heard that there is a book with Cass and Steph being mentored as Batgirls by Barbara coming out in December, that to me is a good thing, what was done in Robin #5 was awful, Jason didn’t have or want to be there, Tim, what the hell was Tim doing there? The only ones that have gotten along with Damian and have had a solid relationship with him were Dick and Steph. Dick had a very nice moment with Damian in that issue, but Steph didn’t, they preferred to have Jason wanting to hug Damian instead (what the actual hell was that?).

Fandom’s Batfamily:

Fandom is a place where people can take any concept from anywhere and transform it into whatever they please. This fandom is just like any other in that matter, but I have noticed that sometimes the Batfamily Fandom tends to blur the lines between what’s fanon and canon. Their lore is so deep and established among people that they sometimes (willingly or not) make new readers or other people believe that how things and perceived in fandom is how things actually are in comics, and that is a huge problem.

Things like “Dick sent Jason to Arkham when the Joker was just a cell away”, “Jason has pit madness and when he gets mad his eyes turn glowy green”, “Dick was a horrendous brother to Jason before Jason died”, “Jason would be good friends with Tim and Cass”, “Jason is the only one that sees the world differently from Bruce and the other robins because he is the only one that comes from a life with no luxury” and so on and on and on…

All of those things are sometimes treated as the absolute truth by fandom and no matter how many times people have debunked and explained that those things aren’t part of comics’ canon because they are simply not true, fandom stills treats those things as the basis of their Batfamily lore.

That lore would be actually fascinating if people didn’t lose sight so easily of the fact that at the end of the day none of that lore can be applied to comics’ canon.

When you enter this fandom things can be extremely confusing and the way some of the characters are characterized are completely different to their canon characterizations, I knew that the Dick fandom was writing about was not real, but I had no idea that Tim being a coffee addict that hasn’t slept in five months and is an absolute genius in everything and anything that he does was completely out of character for him, I just thought that was true to his character in comics too. Something like that happened to me when I took a peek at Jason’s side of fandom, by that time I had read Red Hood/Arsenal, UtRH and New 52 RHatO (yeah in that order, Red Hood/Arsenal wasn’t finished yet though), with the already conflicting characterizations of those books, the first look that I had at fandom’s Jason confused me even more. After considering all those I decided that the Jason that I wanted to see and actually looked appealing to me was UtRH Jason.

Not all people in fandom read comics and that is ABSOLUTELY VALID, I have zero problems with people not liking the comic characterizations of the “Batfamily” characters, but that in itself also creates a rift between fans themselves.

Fandom’s Batfamily lore being introduced in comics’ canon:

This is obviously the intersection of the other two points and this is the biggest problem that I have with the Batfamily concept. The fandom lore has been leaking into comic’s canon for a while now but right now we are kinda drowning in it. Decisions that have been made recently in DC like, Jason giving up his guns, the group chats in Nightwing issues, the family dinners that were hinted at in Cheer #6, and Bruce having had at the ready a Red Hood suit for Jason with a Batman logo in its chest, have been proof enough that DC is planning on skipping any kind of solid writing for these characters to actually get along. We are never going to see these people sit down and talk about their differences and respect each other’s work ethics.

We are never going to get stories of actual essence that prove that these characters understand and care for each other, we are just going to be told that “all is good” and now everyone loves one another and they will build from there.

That is a problem for me.

-

And it also takes away duality from Gotham’s vigilantes, I know I say this too much but it’s the truth, putting all these characters under the ruling of Batman makes them all bland. Jason shouldn’t be part of any sort of group that involves Bruce! My god, I don’t want to see them interact anymore! Bruce has been absolute trash to Jason ever since he came back from the dead and I am tired of DC trying to make them be on good terms!

Jason and Bruce not getting along can co-exist with the fact that Jason isn’t a villain to Batman’s legendary hero. Jason is his own character, with his own morals and he doesn’t need a bat symbol on his chest or book logo to be relevant. Same with Dick, Tim and Barbara, let them be characters that can stand on their own because they have already done that!

Barbara as Oracle worked WITH Batman if she wanted, she had her own logo and had passed on the mantle of Batgirl because he had grown out of it.

Dick is Nightwing and has become an even better hero than Batman could even aspire to become, he has contacts with everyone in the DC universe, has led countless teams, he doesn’t NEED a batman logo on his book or to be constantly dragged back to him just to make the Bat more compelling.

Jason, my sweet Jason, he had his own logo! It was gorgeous and then Lobdell had the audacity to stamp a Batman logo in the middle of the book name and in Jason’s chest! Have we gone absolutely mad? Why did they do that? Lobdell’s constant back and forth with Jason and his feelings for Bruce, he respects him and he doesn’t, he kills and he doesn’t… each issue felt like a new take on the character! It was crazy!

And that has happened with everyone in the “family”. I will end this by saying that Bruce/Batman being at the centre of this “Batfamily” dynamic is the most laughable thing in the DC Universe. Batman isn’t family to any of the people that they constantly surround him with, he is a piece of shit.

Anyway Anon, I hope this answer doesn’t ruin your day and that you understand that even though I really don’t like the “Batfamily” concept, you and everyone else are allowed and encouraged to think differently!

Hope you have a marvellous day Anon!

[ghoulgeists]

HEWWO I HAVE QUESTIONS.... flint: 1, 5, 19, 22, 25, 30, 33, 36, 41, 49, 51 / cadma: 3 8, 15, 21, 52, 57, 59 / feng huo: 9, 17, 30, 31, 67

KISSES U.... thank u for asking about my chilbren... answers under cut bc long :’D

Flint

I’m gonna answer theirs according the alternate story thing I have for them instead of their actual game self because those are. Two very different people lol :’D This is probably what you wanted anyway?! uwu

1. why did they choose their class(es)? their subclass(es)? Becoming a warlock was never in their intentions, it was done more so because both parties would benefit from the relationship. Flint’s patron needs to earn some favor with a higher power to accomplish their own goals and Flint needed to get rid of some undead, so a celestial patronage was a pretty painless deal. They need each other a little more than they might realize though :^)

5. do they follow a higher power? what are their thoughts on divinity? They don’t follow a higher power, necessarily. Because of their patron they do have to keep in mind that their power comes from being in someone’s good books, and they act accordingly to stay there. Otherwise they believe in the power of gods and all, but their relationship with divinity is generally pretty lax. They’re the kind of person who only prays when they need it, if that makes sense?

19. what haunts them? what doesn’t? All the mistakes from Flint’s not-so-distant past bite at their heels every now and then. What doesn’t haunt them so much is probably the fact they rob tombs lmao... As far as Flint is concerned, an angry spirit or two can’t touch them the same way a grudge from the corporeal can.

22. what is a promise they’ve broken? There’s a lot... but probably the one that ruins them the most is a promise they made to themselves not to hurt people.

25. what stories do they like to tell? what stories do they like to hear? Flint is an expert at spooky campfire ghost stories, mostly because they draw from their own experiences. As for what they like to hear... They like very classic “hero gets the girl” kinds of tales! Stuff you don’t have to take too seriously, and are just stories to be stories.

30. what do they seek out from others? Someone to watch their back while they pilfer jewels and to stoke the campfire when it’s their turn to keep watch at night. In a word, reliability!

33. what makes them cry? So many things... Flint acts tough but they’re a baby... To rattle off a few things, they get weepy whenever someone cares too much about them, whenever someone has to say goodbye (no matter how temporary), and whenever they hear something sappy and romantic. It is almost too easy to pull at their heartstrings.

36. what’s a secret they’ve kept? Probably the biggest secret they keep is what they were like in the past. They spent a lot of years doing some pretty... morally and ethically questionable things...

41. what are they attracted to in other people? It’s weird... but probably loneliness? Not in a sad way or anything (exclusively). Flint has ended up surrounded by people who know too much, so much so that it makes them unquestionably different from others. That kind of thing breeds loneliness and Flint likes filling voids. Being needed? That’s sexy.

49. what makes them smile? They will visibly light up when they get close to a certain town. Where a certain person lives. :^) But also they’ll smile in almost any relaxed situation, like while they’re playing music, listening in on casual conversations, or just drinking in nature.

51. what is the most beautiful thing in the world, for them? A tomb full of riches... polished gold... ah, it almost brings a tear to their eye...

Cadma

3. what is their goal right now? He’s kind of drifting through life, just with a lot of enthusiasm, so I don’t think he really has grand ambitions or anything. I suppose you could say his goal right now is supposed to be thwarting a lich queen’s evil plans for world domination, but honestly he’s just here to vibe.

8. what are three songs that suit them? Wait I don’t know anything about music- UH Soldier, Poet, King by The Oh Hellos, Here’s a Health to the Company by The Longest Johns, and Halcyon by The Paper Kites kind of fit Cadma’s vibes. Despite his personality he’s pretty mellow on the inside!

15. do they trust their party? why or why not? Cadma trusts his party more than anything, because he’s stuck by them for longer than anyone else. He used to be (and probably still is let’s be real) very flaky- the second something looks more interesting, or things start looking dangerous he’s GONE. So hanging out with the same crew for years, through thick and thin, has gotta mean SOMETHING at this point, right??

21. do they follow their head, their heart, or their body? Definitely his heart, maybe a little his body. Cadma just has no braincells.

52. from whom do they seek validation? People with more brains than him lol... His old captain (even though that ship has kind of sailed), his current party members, pretty much anyone who is perceivably smarter than he is is someone he wants to keep around and impress.

57. what makes them angry? Not a whole lot, but anyone who uses their faith as justification for keeping the status quo gets put immediately on a hit list. That, and anyone who disrespects a ship 😤

59. what is a quiet passion of theirs? Nothing about Cadma is very quiet, but recently he’s taken up whittling because he needed something to do while everyone else in the party figured out puzzles :’) He’s not good at it.

Feng Huo

9. do they care about their appearance? how much effort do they put into presentation? Not a whole lot! Feng Huo was kind of cast out of his village with nothing but the clothes on his back, so he does try to keep what he’s wearing tidy since he can’t exactly afford rips and tears. As well as that, he maintains normal upkeep on all his feathers and plumage just to keep healthy!

17. what do they dream about, when their dreams are their own? They dream about going home one day, seeing all the family and friends they were forced to leave behind. He’s a little afraid of how much might’ve changed in his absence, but his heart really aches for his village. He’s super homesick :’(

30.  what do they seek out from others? Nothing! Feng Huo is the kind of person who gives without asking anything in return. I guess what he wants the most is someone who will just be nice to him, or won’t treat him differently? He gets a lot of looks because he’s a phoenix, so being near people who don’t think he’s weird would be very nice!

31. they’re given a blank piece of paper–what do they do with it? At first he wants to write a letter home, but then he decides against it when he realizes no one will know where to deliver it so he just makes a paper crane instead. Not in a sad way though!! It’s more like... an “oh well! plan b!” kind of way :’D

67. what makes them laugh? Literally anything... Corny jokes and terrible puns especially!

THANK U FOR THE ASK THIS WAS FUN!!! ilu ♥

[emblemxeno]

(3H SPOILERS) Analysis of Main Characters in FE and the Western FE Community’s Perception of Them

In the midst of all the Three Houses hype, there’s a lot of contention with Edelgard as a character as well as her route in general with how it plays out.

With this, it’s given me some perspective on how the community feels about main characters and whether or not they are liked and/or well written. Since I am a Westerner myself, please always assume this is in the context of the western FE audience, as I don’t know enough about the JP audience to do comparisons or whatnot.

Now with this, there’s more or less a pattern with some main characters in how they’re received by western fans. (Sigurd, Seliph, Leif, Roy and Kris won’t be covered in this since I haven’t read enough of their games’ scripts to get a grasp on them)

The most contentious main characters by far are Eirika, Micaiah, Corrin and Celica (when I say contentious I don’t mean unpopular as they have many fans; however, though popular, they also have the most detractors). 

These characters all have very defined flaws that get them in trouble in their games, are peace seeking in general and look for peaceful ways unless there is no other choice, and all do questionable things in their stories that call for doubt, discussion, and criticism. Most of their development comes from making mistakes and learning from them. They are also all known for getting into situations where they either need rescue or because of something they fucked up.

The least contentious main characters (compared to the four above, I might add) are Hector, Ephraim, Ike, and Alm. 

They may or may not have noticeable flaws, but they hardly ever cause trouble for them. They may or may not seek peace at some opportunities, but are always willing, with no hesitation, to fight. They are all blunt and speak their mind, and though sometimes that poses situations where they could get into trouble, but they never really do. Most of their development comes from growth after bad things happening to them rather than something that they messed up.

In this, realize that main characters are the ones that people identify with the most, therefore, there’s a reason for certain characters to be less contentious than others. In particular, the reason for FE main characters?

It’s probably a little bitchy to say it like this, but it’s kind of power fantasy esque. 

Hector, Ephraim, Ike, and Alm all have great authority/renown within their groups or territories and are always seemingly in control of the situation. They are hardly questioned, and when they are they are almost always proven right. In short, the players like these characters because they are validated as strong, intelligent, and almost always in control of the moment. Since these are the characters players identify with, the players themselves feel validated.

In contrast, compare to them Eirika, Micaiah, Corrin and Celica. They hold little authority (compared to the other four), are questioned and not always proven right, doubted at some points, they question and doubt themselves, they’re not as notably strong in various fields like the other four so they don’t get validated as the other four. Being main characters, these are also characters that players are to identify with, but since they have unattractive/undesirable qualities to them, (and because FE players always believe they themselves have the perfect solutions to everything) they are instead cast aside as being badly written, stupid, incompetent, and the oh so misused moniker, Mary Sue. 

(Well, Celica doesn’t really get called that, but that’s because she wasn’t known by the audience that uses it frequently, and Echoes came out at a period when people stopped using it wrongly)

Again, I don’t wanna sound condescending, but power fantasy is really what I get from this.

Now there is sort of a problem with this theory, and that’s Ephraim, because he’s contentious in his own right because of the shit he pulls in FE8, but he gets less flack than his sister, Corrin, and Micaiah, so...

Anyway, besides the characters I intentionally left out because I didn’t know enough about them, there remains Marth, Lyn, Eliwood, Chrom, Robin, and the 3H Lords.

What’s notable about Mar-Mar is that his Shadow Dragon interpretation is very well received over here in the west. Marth in Shadow Dragon is written as being more blunt, and not really questioning himself, his actions, or anything that happens around him. Notice how this is very much unique to SD, as the original Dark Dragon script as well as Mystery and New Mystery portray softer, more idealistic Mar-Mars. Heroes also takes after those portrayals. Yet the audience here likes the SD portrayal the best; the one most similar to Hector, Ephraim, Ike, and Alm.

Lyn is in an interesting situation; she’s very much in control and she’s not as unimportant in the story as some say, but it’s still very much Eliwood’s story. Which makes it all the more weird that Hector shines over poor Eli. Had Lyn not been many players first Waifu FE lord, Hector would no doubt be the most popular one. Compared to Hec, Eli is peaceseeking and idealistic, though not to the point of the more contentious lords, so he gets passed on compared to his friends, but not to the point where people think he’s badly written.

Chrom and Robin are in an interesting situation as well, as the story is Chrom’s and then gradually become’s Robin’s story as it nears the end. (Some say they stole it from Chrom, but I would say it’s like the spotlight slowly drifted from him to them) 

Chrom doesn’t have a notable flaw that gets him into danger, and is in control/has authority throughout a good deal of the campaign, but also very emotional and starts looking for peaceful solutions more often than say Hector, Ephraim, Ike, and Alm. Chrom tries to reason with Walhart, even, and those other four would never. So he’s kind of at an in between. Robin... is kind of hard to discern. They are supposed to be the character the player identifies with more since they are the avatar. We do see that they are in control as well and never makes to many mistakes. But they’re also batshit crazy for setting fleets on fire and fighting in a volcano. Having the player suspend their disbelief like that isn’t the best thing for identifying with a character, but it seems people like them enough for other reasons so indirect validation isn’t as prominent a thing with them.

Then come the 3H lords, and oh my, they do not fit into any sort of mold whatsoever; not perfectly anyway.

Byleth being a complete blank slate means they are truly in the middle on things; despite being the least customizable in appearance, they are the most avatar like of the FE avatars. The player can feel true, direct validation from the 3H cast as you get to pick which dialogue choices you want, and do other things at your own pace. (Unless you care about support points) As a character they’re not anything too special, but since they are a true avatar, they’re not seen as bad as say, Corrin, because the player can literally be who they want through Byleth and be validated by the story at the same time.

Edelgard, (the most discussed of the lords) is also unique. Never has a main character been so extreme in how they accomplish things. From what I’ve gathered from FE4, she’s Arvis like. And yet, she’s a protagonist in one possible outcome. She has the attractive qualities of protagonists like Hector and Ike, (being in control/having authority, speaking her mind) yet she’s contentious because unlike them her morality is very grey. The very definition of the ends justify the means. There’s a reason her title in Heroes is ‘The Future’. Because her goal and ambition is for the future, with no limit on what she’ll do to get there.

Dimitri is unique because he starts off as model prince, honor loving, sweet boy with bad hair. Then you gradually notice strange things about him, then Remire happens, then you learn he’s at the academy for revenge, then he goes feral at the Holy Tomb, and descends even further for 5 years, until he’s a revenge obsessed beast. He then begins his ascent back to being a proper king for his people (he’s more deserving of the title Restoration King than Ephraim, but that’s just me). There’s never been a main character in FE that falls so low and then climbs back up like that.

Claude himself is unique as well. Besides being the most well adjusted of the three lords, he’s actually pretty idealistic compared to them. He has big dreams and ambitions for Fodlan, and his main concerns are with the world at large, and his story doesn’t end with the major war among the 3 factions. He’s intelligent enough to not be blinded by emotion like Dimitri but also keen enough enough to realize that pure brute force isn’t the only option unlike with Edelgard. He’s very much a middle ground, but a middle ground that’s like a bell curve instead of a straight line, since Edie and Dima both fall hard and do messed up things, but are still not completely terrible people, whereas Claude is nowhere as extreme as they are and feels like a true balance.

If nothing else, 3 Houses achieves something very different with all of its main characters for once.

Anway, that’s kind of all I have. Sorry for the long post, but Fire Emblem is my #1 game series for a reason, so I get big into these passion analyses sometimes.

[berniesrevolution]

Americans believe a lot of lies about the police. In fact, most people can agree on this. They just disagree about what those lies are. Is the typical cop a cold-eyed executioner with a brutal disregard for human rights, or a selfless hero who risks his life to protect the community? Depending on who you are, you probably think one of those descriptions sounds utterly ridiculous. And you’re right. You recognize an obvious caricature when you see it. Just as the average Trump voter is neither a cross-burning Klansman nor an amiable unemployed plumber who just wants his job back, the average police officer is also a more complicated creature, a “sausage of angel and beast,” in the words of poet Nicanor Parra.

But “complicated” does not necessarily mean “good,” or “righteous,” or even “defensible.” After a certain number of rapes and murders by police, it becomes much more difficult to believe that “a few bad apples” are responsible for the flood of dead bodies and terrible headlines. The cases come from every part of the country—huge East Coast metropolises, laid-back liberal enclaves on the Pacific seaside, and even the sleepy small towns of the Midwest. Isolated incidents stop being isolated when they happen every week. Something is clearly wrong with America’s law enforcement.

Is this because cruel people become cops, or because becoming a cop makes people cruel? I used to think the answer was obvious, until I watched my friend kill a man on Facebook Live.

Jeronimo Yanez, better known as the cop who shot Philando Castile, was one of my best friends in high school. We played on the same baseball team and hung out in the same Chipotle parking lot. We went to senior prom together. On graduation day, we rolled our eyes and laughed while our parents took ten thousand pictures.

We drifted apart in the years that followed, as high school friends usually do, though once in a while he’d pop up in my newsfeed. My eyes would linger for a second over this CliffsNotes version of his life. Went on a fishing trip—cool. Got married—good for him. Graduated from the police academy—wait, he’s a cop now?

Huh. Weird. What else?

Oh, here’s a photo of Jeronimo holding his baby daughter. Here’s one of him with a classroom full of smiling third-graders. Here are a dozen generic snapshots of an ordinary human enjoying some small and unremarkable pleasure. Five minutes with Photoshop, and that could be your face blowing out birthday candles.

Then, one day, my feed became an endless stream of articles saying that Jeronimo was a murderer.

The people who shared these stories were outraged and heartbroken. Some of them said that Jeronimo was a heartless racist who killed a man and deserved to burn in hell. Many agreed that his acquittal on all charges was yet another mockery of justice in an America that has become a brutal police state where government-sanctioned killers are all but immune from legal consequences, even when they execute an old man eating chicken in his own backyard.

To these people, I would say one thing:

You’re right about the police, and you’re wrong about Jeronimo.

Before we continue, I have to make an apology of sorts. There are inherent problems in telling a story like this one, not the least of which is: why spend thousands of words talking about a cop who killed a human being and then walked free? Don’t “writers of conscience” have a moral obligation to elevate the stories of the oppressed above those of the oppressors? Isn’t Philando Castile, the man who was killed, the person whose story we really ought to be telling? Isn’t profiling his killer a waste of time, at best, and an implicit rationalization of police brutality, at worst?

These are all valid points, but they’re not the only valid points. Our first duty is to mourn the death—and celebrate the life—of Philando Castile. But we should seek to understand why Jeronimo Yanez pulled the trigger. We need to do the difficult and uncomfortable work of exploring how this particular “sausage of angel and beast” was made. Was Jeronimo rotten from the start, or did he become contaminated by a toxic environment? We can’t respond to this tragedy, or the broader tragedy of police violence in America, without a good answer to the question. Understanding what made Jeronimo shoot Philando  Castile is not an act of indulgence. It’s a tactic for preventing future violence.

Although I never met him, I have to think that’s something Philando Castile would want. Before his life was snatched away, he made a reputation as a man of incredible kindness and compassion. His family and friends have spoken about him far more eloquently than I could. His pastor, Danny Givens, said, “you felt seen by him…. you felt like you mattered, like you meant something to him at that moment.” His friend and co-worker, John Thompson, recalls that “if kids couldn’t afford lunch, he would pay for their lunch out of his own pocket. And that was against school policy. And I mean kids can’t afford lunch right now. They miss Mr. Phil at that school. They miss him. I miss my friend.” Another colleague, Joan Edman, put it simply: “this man mattered.”

I believe that Castile’s death was a violation of the fundamental agreement that underpins any society—namely, that its members agree to not slaughter each other—and therefore that it is what most people would consider “a crime.” By definition, that makes Jeronimo Yanez a criminal. Critics of the criminal justice system are fierce and convincing in their call for criminals to be treated as human beings. I draw certain conclusions from that, but I understand that others will draw their own. You’d have a point if you said, “but Yanez isn’t actually a criminal—he’s already been humanized by a system that literally let him get away with murder because he was scared.” This is true, and it is terrible. Yet even if you believe that he’s an inhuman monster, and you hate everything that he represents, it’s still generally a good idea to know your enemy, if only to fight him more effectively.

It is neither my intention nor desire to portray Jeronimo as a sympathetic figure. I just want to give a truthful description of the person I knew, because I believe that his story can help us understand why America’s police problems cannot be solved by “smarter” or “nicer” cops. This is the most dangerous lie about the police. If they could turn my friend into a killer, there is a deeper evil at work.

I met Jeronimo Yanez on the first day of our sophomore year. It was September 2004 and I had just transferred to South St. Paul, proud home of the South St. Paul Packers. The school took its name from the historic Union Stockyards just down the street. Its slaughterhouses and meatpacking plants were slowly being replaced by respectably bland business centers, but a faint odor of boiling fat still wafted up from the riverside when the wind blew just right.

South St. Paul was the kind of blue-collar town that inspires entire Bruce Springsteen albums. Many families had lived there for over a hundred years. They traced their roots from the Eastern European immigrants who came to work in the stockyards, and who had built venerable social institutions (i.e. drinking establishments) with names like “Croatian Hall” and “Polish National Association.” Polka music was enjoyed, meat raffles were held, bowling leagues were well-attended.

(Continue Reading)

[exitiumsuum]

I'm curious, you said you love megarod so much? What dynamic are you envisioning for the two? I personally don't like it because what interactions rodimus and megatron had seemed incredibly abusive or at least negative to me- but i'd be interested in seeing your view on the subject if you'd be willing to share?

(Sorry I took so long to answer, Chrome borked, and then I got tacos. I hope this doesn’t come across rude or anything. I tend to be a little dry in my analysis. I blame being an art and  history major.)

I don’t know if you’re following, or how long if you are. Partially because this has been a pretty prevalent ship on my my blog, along with another (that hugely developed from an amazing partner but that’s a tangent). But also because I’ve written several meta before on Megatron’s warped perception of the world and development of unhealthy coping mechanisms that have modeled him to be The Way He Is, both of his own doing and outside contribution.

That being said, Megatron has grown to be an abusive individual. Practically any and all interaction he has with anyone at any given time can be taken that way. He’s a short tempered, explosive, control freak who hates being told he’s wrong. Any ship with him is going to start off outright abusive, bordering abusive, or turn abusive, depending with what character and at what point in time you ship him. There is really no way around that, at all.

Through MTMTE and LL we’re watching both of these characters grow. Rodimus is valiantly trying to carve his own path, and make a name for himself, while trying to overcome his own hang-ups and insecurities. He’s trying to prove himself and work himself out from under the shadow of the hero he’s practically worshipped, and sometimes still seeks guidance from, despite how said hero treats him. Megatron is seeking atonement more so than forgiveness, and it’s ultimately a journey of self-awareness and moving forward and accepting his eventual end. Granted, there are valid criticisms in how that story played out, and I have my own, but that’s basically the gist of what story is being told here. It’s a theme for them, and everyone else on the ship.

Whether you ship them romantically or not, it’s something pretty clearly presented that these two characters bring a sort of completion to each other. They are both each other’s face and heel. The two of them are both rather stubborn and obstinate, and in their clashing, they teach each other. Megatron curbs Rodimus’ impulsivity and causes him to weigh the consequences and outcomes of his actions. Be a little more analytical in his approach. Exert and exercise control. And to actually be self-aware, as it’s something he’s struggling to learn for himself, too. Meanwhile, Rodimus shows Megatron that sometimes you have to fly by the seat of your pants. That it’s okay to let things be out of your control. And that it’s okay to be ruled by your kinder emotions, the ones that have been suppressed for so long.

Megatron does berate and chastise Rodimus. It’s not usually for “no reason”, and often hinges on Rodimus being childish or otherwise pedantic, and Megatron not having any patience, and also a lack of tact on how to deal with it, especially early on as those aforementioned unhealthy control issues don’t change overnight. And also because they’re both stubborn individuals who don’t like to yield. But despite their arguments, Megatron is one of the few characters that actually respects Rodimus. He doesn’t go out of his way to demean or undermine him, or treat him like a child like so many other characters do, even when they’re trying to be supportive. (It’s only when Rodimus acts like it, and warrants it.) Their conflicts tend to come as a result of their equal stubbornness, and a difference of opinion (which isn’t always that different, just the execution of it).

There is also the fact that the power imbalance is actually somewhat skewed toward Rodimus. Megatron may have been appointed the title of co-captain by Optimus, but Rodimus is ultimately the commanding officer, and has been. He is also essentially Megatron’s warden by extension. This is not something Megatron is used to, as he’s the one typically in charge. Of course he’s going to buck against that a bit. But Rodimus is the one with power over him. And he respects that Rodimus is a capable captain. He sees it, he knows it, and he knows that ROdimus doesn’t actually see it in himself despite his bravado.

Conversely, Rodimus is shown to be an incredibly empathic character. While he makes himself out to be selfish and self centered, he is completely the opposite. He has a strong moral compass, and he will sacrifice himself to do what he feels is just and right, and for the better of everyone else. He’s self sacrificing to a fault. He is also incredibly understanding, and willing to see past even centuries worth of corruption to find what lies underneath, and willing to give a second chance. His entire friendship with Drift is based around this alone. And despite his prejudices (prejudices with good reason), he is able to see Megatron taking steps to actually better himself, even if it seem sto everyone else that it’s too little too late.

The point is, they both bring a piece to each other that completes them, and in some way allows them to make a bigger step in the goal of their character growth. They also realize each others’ potential at a level that no one else does. Is it because they empathise with each other on some level? Perhaps. Their convictions aren’t that different. It was the execution of them that cause their paths to deviate so far.

Either way, the chemistry is there (whether you see it romantically or not), and in my opinion undeniable, and exceptionally under utilized. But that’s what fanfic and roleplay is for.

I am also personally a sucker for ‘oil and water” type pairings, where the two have such opposing personalities, yet they find a common ground and find their jagged edges actually fit together in a way that helps them both to heal. So I ship it romantically. It’s a pairing that takes a lot of work, but I feel they’re both the type of characters that would give it the work it needs with enough time. Because that’s just how Rodimus is as a person, and he’s the best thing to ever happen to Megatron, and I don’t see him wanting to let that go.

Anyway, that’s how I see it. I hope that answers your question.

[spockandawe]

For the fandom/ships meme: B, D, I, J, K, Q, T, U, V, W, X, Y. (I mean, I like everything you say on fandoms, so you knew this would be fairly comprehensive.)

B - A pairing–platonic, romantic or sexual–that you initially didn’t consider, but someone changed your mind.

Oh man, there are lots for sure!! I’m a sucker for a well-written crackship, and I know I have fun writing them too :P From the last ask, starscream/optimus and jazz/soundwave were both things I’d never considered until I read a really amazing fic, and now I adore them both. Or ratchet/skywarp. That fic didn’t even GO there, but now I have a wip of my own and have already been experimenting with drift/ratchet/skywarp because why make any sense at all when i could so easily make LESS sense :P

I do it to myself too, I tossed off the idea of cyclonus/starscream as a joke, my “friends” encouraged me, and oh god suddenly I’m two fics deep in a series with at least four separate fics planned for the future. Oooh, or in a different fandom for a change, @veliseraptor threw me RIGHT down the steve/loki pit, and I’m never leaving, this is where I live now. 

D - A pairing you wish you liked but just can’t.

HMMM. I think... I don’t dislike many ships in the franchises like homestuck or transformers, where there’s a giant cast to mush up against each other. I guess I wish I had a bit more natural enthusiasm for brainstorm/perceptor. It’s really cute and I definitely do like it, I just can’t muster up much enthusiasm for perceptor in general, which puts some damper on it. I do like it a decent amount, I just wish I liked it more.

I - Has Tumblr caused you to stop liking any fandoms, if so, which and why?

It’s made me... wary of some fandoms. Or fandom in general, in some ways. Steven Universe, if I get involved with that again, it’s going to be art and no words, because the moral policing atmosphere is just getting to be Too Much. If I wasn’t rolling around in a universe populated by nigh-immortal space robots, I’m sure there would be other stuff too, but I’ve been pretty sheltered.

J - Name a fandom you didn’t think about until you saw it all over Tumblr. (You don’t have to care about it or follow it; it just has to be something that Tumblr made you aware of.)

Boku no hero academia is the most recent one, I think. I don’t know if I’ll ever participate in things, but I finally read the manga and loved it a lot! I caught the edges of the buzz about the Imperial Radch books, and I don’t know if I would have ever read them if I hadn’t had prior awareness when my friend brought them up, and these are some of my favorite books EVER, so I’m glad tumblr clued me in XD

K - What character has your favorite development arc/the best development arc?

Oh no, this is HARD :c The trouble with casts of thousands is that nobody can dominate the focus too hard. But when a story is super-focused on a character and how they Develop, I tend to drift away. Umm. Cyclonus and Whirl both hold a special, special, special place in my heart. Megatron probably has one of the more dramatic development arcs, even though Cyclonus and Whirl both own my heart.

Or. I know it’s not the real question. But I love characters where the story WRECKS them, even if it doesn’t quite follow through on putting them back together again. Whirl is a long ways from where he used to be, but still definitely has issues. But oh man. Prowl. STARSCREAM. The transformers comics took two proud, cold, capable assholes and broke them DOWN. And it was GLORIOUS. It’s not really the same as a development arc, because they’re both still... not in good shape. But I wouldn’t care so much if I hadn’t seen where they started and what happened to do this to them. It’s negative development, but it’s so tragic and tasty and gives me such interesting material to think about!!

Q - A fandom you’ve abandoned and why.

Ahh...  Avatar, probably. Of all the fandoms I’ve participated in on here, that’s the one I’m least likely to return to. I think the problem is that after I did Avatar, I rolled around in Homestuck. I moved from there to Transformers. I dabbled in Marvel. The Avatar universe is very interesting, but the cast is much more limited, the universe is more constrained, and there’s One Canon.

Canon doesn’t necessarily mean that much to me, I’ll cheerfully multiship no matter what. But it’s different thinking ‘well this is canon, but what if... Other Thing’ versus ‘lmao does anyone even know how many separate continuities there are at this point’. It breaks my brain wide open. I don’t start from canon and branch out. I think that ‘well, optimus and megatron have classically had characters and shippy dynamics shaped like X, Y, and Z, so I can pick and choose bits and pieces of settings, scenarios, backstory, supporting cast, the possibilities are ENDLESS--’ Homestuck plays a lot with the idea of continuity and comics universes are one of the closest parallels I can think of to the mess that is transformers. I just don’t know how I’m supposed to go back to playing in smaller sandboxes at this point XD

T - Do you have any hard and fast headcanons that you will die defending? 

Autistic Cyclonus. Fite me.

Or, Starscream with his history and current mental health reflected in disordered eating and sleeping, with a persistent food-hoarding habit. I would say fite me, but actually, read my stories where I stick it right in the text and see how nicely it works.

U - Three favorite characters from three different fandoms, and why they’re your favorites.

Different fandoms? DIFFERENT fandoms?????? D:

1. Transformers: Starscream - he’s just... the complete disaster package. He’s vain and egotistical, competent and dangerous, but never manages to succeed and make it LAST. In IDW, he beat out massive odds to get where he is, and survived by the skin of his teeth, and has struggled and STRUGGLED and is prone to being his own worst enemy, and has sabotaged himself enough that he’s barely staying afloat despite sincerely wanting to try his best. I’m weak against all of these things.

2. oh god how am I supposed to pick a favorite homestuck character this is CYBERBULLYING. Okay. Um. I’m going to say Equius. There’s something about the Zahhaks being so stiff and cold and rigid and distant, but also somehow way too close, and swinging between antagonistic and desperate to please. I’ve done better words about Zahhaks in the past, and I’m starting to get sleepy right now, but I am ALWAYS a sucker for the characters who are a mess of contradictions and prone to sabotaging themselves :P

3. Steven Universe: Jasper - Ahahaha, one last self-sabotaging love of my life. She’s different from those others, because she’s been pretty much at the top of her game until very recently. But her issues!!! Everything to do with being the Perfect quartz (from a failed colony, belonging to a dead diamond). The pride and self-doubt are a delicious combination, especially once she gets a taste of fusion and the sense of belonging that comes with it. If I ever did write steven universe, it would have to be about here. Those contradictions and the way they pull you apart, that’s the same thing that draws me hardest to starscream, but it’s hard to do justice to the emotions when you’re writing about them, it’s got so much more impact when you show them directly instead.

V - Which character do you relate to most?

Ooooooh. This. Is tough. Ironfist is the melancholy answer, Nautica is the upbeat one. They’re both spergy engineer types with interests all over the place, who get so ENTHUSIASTIC and excited, and I’m not nearly as outgoing as either of them, but god do they ring familiar to me XD Or, Cyclonus is also a very valid candidate. Internet spock is an uncommunicative recluse, but that’s still a lot more outgoing than irl spock, and Cyclonus is many emotions turned RIGHT inward, even when it would be really, really useful to express them just a LITTLE. And all the plot that goes down between 47-55 with Cyclonus, god, it’s not like I’ve ever done anything like that, but it hits me right in the weak spot.

[roxannepolice]

Punishments, redemptions and force deprivations - or the b*tching that was promised

Arite, so I guess we all here agree that Luke’s naughty nephew can’t end this trilogy with so much as a tap on his wrist. Some reckoning is due for jedi killing, dad piercing, mind probing, force choking and village burning. But I guess we also all agree that it can’t be another redemption=death feast, we had it with his grandpa. 

So, all sorts of different theories as to how Kylo Ben will pay for his crimes have emerged, the most popular of those being maiming (particularly arm losing), exile (more or less self imposed), imprisonment (for term unknown) and force deprivation. Being frustrated with the apparent seductiveness of all of these tropes being flung here and there, I decided to explain why none of this makes much sense for a deeper narrative meaning. Disclaimer, though: I can’t say that the writers definitely won’t go there, I can only explain why they don’t make as much sense as they would seem at a first glance. I’ll also spend more time on the subject of force  deprivation, because it’s, frankly, probably the most tempting and the most shiver inducing.

First of all, all of the above options could be very strong narrative points – if they’re temporary. Yes, that would even include death, considering Rey’s heroine journey is likely to incorporate some rebirth imagery. Loss of arm is still an option to honour a family tradition, especially if Kylo Ben loses his crossguard lightsaber and has to use Luke’s green one - the weapon that made a would - for a while. But when any of those things is done permanently.... well, that’s where my bitching comes in.

Let us dissect what are narrative purposes of punishment, beginning with enumerating what they shouldn’t, though very often seem to, be:

giving audience a sense of justice – this is probably the most valid point among these. We certainly need some karma feast before we’ll forgive Kylo Ben. But that being said, the attitude of well, we don’t won’t him to die, so let him be permanently deprived in some other way has too much of hand washing vibe, IMO. That especially applies to force deprivation. We’re civilised people, popculture progressed so much since Vader... No, let him live, but let’s make sure he can no longer cause evil he’s caused by taking away from him a universal power dormantly binding all beings that he had too much of and clearly abused. *Sigh* This may be a heavy cannon, but this, y’all is

Goodness is something to be chosen. When a man cannot choose he ceases to be a man, if you get the drift. And no, this doesn’t mean I apply exactly the same morality to real life, this is fiction, here to provide me with a catharsis that may become reflection over real world, not give me straightforward answers about it, I can’t believe I had to consider this disclaimer

paying for the crimes – let’s get something straight. If you kill a murderer, you don’t bring back the people they’ve killed, you only get another dead person. I think we all agree here that Kylo Ben’s redemption will be through life, not death but also not any other punishment. Because him suffering won’t erase the suffering he’s caused

a lesson for the audience through a character, aka. cautionary – yes, I get it, Don Giovanni was a bad person to seduce thousands and commit murder, he refused to repent, Commandor’s ghost was right to drag him to hell, and good guys are even more right to sing Questo e fin di chi fa mal. I suppose I won’t be seducing people and killing their fathers now that I’ve seen a man dragged to theatrical hell. Congratulations, Wolfie, you’ve done a great job if you think’s that’s serious just listen to the opera and hear the mockery in the music

So, now that we’re clear on what aren’t the narrative purposes of punishment, let’s dig deeper beyond the surface level and see what hides beneath the above simulacrae.

evoking pity for the character – well, art isn’t a purely intellectual experience, we need some appeal to the emotions, too. What seems to us like justice getting it’s due is in fact evoking in us – and other characters – pity towards a reforming character. It’s rediscovering humanity where we denied its existence. Maiming, imprisonment, exile, torture and force deprivation would all have that effect on the audience, however they can easily turn to joy when the reformed villain has their status restored when they prove worthy

a declaration – when a villainous character willingly subjugates themselves to good guys’ justice, it serves to show that they aren’t just tossing words at wind. They want to change, in fact they want nothing more in their lives, so they would accept whatever price they have to pay for the world to allow them that change – even if it’s their life, to show that they accept the right of those they formerly fought. Again, all options match, though permanence is almost counterproductive

a lesson for the audience and a character – if nothing else works to for the villain to change their ways, they need a lesson, which will also serve as a food for thought for the audience. This is where the trope of paying with what they value most about themselves comes in, especially if pride was one of their sins. Ramsay Bolton trigger warning.

A warrior loses a hand, a seducer gets neutred, a prophet (seer) goes blind, a liar loses a tongue, Thor loses Mjolnir – an extremely powerful force user loses his force sensitivity. They need to understand what it’s like to be one of those they despised and abused – but, on a more positive note when a character is to become a hero, also learn that their value didn’t end at what they considered their only greatest asset.

This is Star Wars, it’s now adoptive sibling of MCU, not HBO, and that’s why I can see temporary, Thor-like, loss of force sensitivity in store for Kylo Ben – maybe that would be the revival in Rey’s story, should Disney-LF feel that actual BatB scene could be a tad too cheesy. So now I’ll delve into narrative options for force deprivation and explain why they all make more sense when temporary and not permanent:

he cuts himself away from it as a form of self-flagellation – done. And really, Luke’s whole arc in TLJ was about refusing to act being just as harmful as acting wrongly, so I can only see that scenario if it ends with Rey kicking another Skywalker’s ass out of useless pit of despair

he’s deprived of it by the bad guys – first of all, let’s discuss the logistics here. It’s not as if any technology or chemistry could actually bend the universal will to their own desire. The most it can do is mess with an individual’s nervous system enough for them to not be able to use it. I can see that happening to Kylo Ben, courtesy of Hux, once again, excellent occasion for Rey’s revival powers to shine. That being said – this here, is Faustus. Devil can have all the chirographs he likes, the doctor can willingly forfeit his soul – God and Margaret have different plans

he’s deprived of it by the good guys – so I suppose they could even try to be more delicate about than Hugsy. But it’s necessary. It’s just. It’s what the force wants, they know it, it’s they that keep telling each other may the force be with you. This here, on the other hand, is Tannhauser. The pope knows when a sinner is beyond redemption and has God’s word on his side to deny the absolution – and ends up with his staff springing leaves to show him he himself became blinded by pride

he just loses it. Force is done. he doesn’t deserve it – BITCH, NOW?!!!!!! YOU DID NOTHING TO PALPATINE, TO SNOKE, TO MAUL, EVEN TO VADER BUT NOW YOU INTERVENE? I KNOW ANAKIN HARDLY GOT HIS CHARACTER FROM SHMI, BUT REALLY????? There’s no narratively satisfying moment for that to happen (again, permanently) – if it happens after he turns, what the hell, now that he’s trying to actually make up for the evil, now he gets punished? This is no case of showing good will, what’s the point? If before – well, exactly, bitch, now? Not when Snoke started to get inside his head, not when he destroyed the jedi temple, not when he killed his father, not the moment he seized power, only some two years into his rule? Honestly, there’s only one way that would make sense – if he’s actually really effing evil as the renperor and... frankly, I root for his redemption because I believe he’s actually capable of being a good person before it’s his only option.

There are some other reasons why force deprivation would feel right to us. Some may want to see it as passing the torch entirely out of Skywalker bloodline and onto Rey (cue in some mystical feminism) – but, frankly speaking, you can’t have a trilogy packed to the brim with yin-yang imagery and then end it with yeah, they’re equal and mutually dependent parts but some parts are just equaller. In a way, Kylo Ben’s role isn’t to redeem himself only to redeem all of the darkness of the prime jedi.

There’s also the laying down the gun trope – the sheriff saves the city and then drops his star to go farming.  This feels right to us, even those who wish Reylo all the best. But that’s the problem with both accepted/self imposed force deprivation, exile and to some extent imprisonment – they all give a sense of peace.

And Kylo Ben deserves many things – corporeal punishment, learning what it’s like to not be force sensitive, sex with Rey, being a subject to mind probe (though I would say he had it the hard way with Snoke for years), losing his arm, fighting side by side with Rey, utter hellfire which will explode in his chest when he sees Chewie, showing off what the piece of junk can actually do, kissing every freckle on Rey’s skin, guiding a new generation of force users, especially those temped by extreme darkness, family with Rey. Punishment. Redemption. Life. Love. Happiness. 

But not peace. Not yet.

[iincandcscence-a-blog]

Rodimus has clearly obvious tropes that are embedded into his personality, I want to elaborate on a few. Namely, his Chronic Hero Syndrome / Hero Complex / Heroic Self-Deprecation (these all, ironically, go hand-in-hand), his Brilliant, but Lazy attitude (which is also tied into another trope that I wish to elaborate on), his very clear Fatal Flaw(s), what’s Beneath the Mask / his personality as a Jerk With a Heart of Gold, his role as The Atoner (it’s not an extreme level, but it’s there) and how it connects with the trope My Greatest Failure, and last but not least his thought processes: It’s All My Fault / My God, What Have I Done?

Oh, and of course, you have his Father To His Men attitude. Because he’s not always immature when it comes to that but I will go into this last.

(Thank you, TVTropes.)

Now, to put this under a read more because it’s LONG. Like, super long.

Chronic Hero Syndrome is different to Hero Complex, and Hero Complex is different to Heroic Self-Deprecation. What’s kind of sad is that, for Rodimus, they all tie into each other in some way. You might have gathered that this all has something to do with him being a hero. And it is! Just not necessarily in a good way.

The definition of Chronic Hero Syndrome is provided by TVTropes and is as follows:

“Chronic Hero Syndrome is an "affliction" of cleaner heroes where for them, every wrong within earshot must be righted, and everyone in need must be helped, preferably by Our Hero themself.”

This part of Rodimus is... Well, it’s not entirely mild. It shows in the comic in various ways and when Megatron came into play, they decided to go around and help those in need along the way (or, maybe, it pushed Rodimus into doing more and trying to help - whether it was out of pride or finally having a reason to try and one-up Megatron is debatable). Though, because of this trope, it’s more than likely the key reason Rodimus was so easily manipulated by Getaway and, by extension, the mutineers - because his heroism can be so obvious, they could’ve expected that he’d jump on the opportunity to go and investigate a distress signal.

And, in a way, this stems into his Hero Complex. Where Chronic Heroic Syndrome is an extreme, Rodimus more or less fits better into the Hero Complex. Simply put, a Hero Complex is the innate desire to fulfill heroic deeds, for recognition of their heroic deeds.

The extreme is destroying things to then make said things better once again, though with the intention of doing so in the first place. Rodimus does this unintentionally, but that’s not quite the focus. Rodimus wants to make amends for what he’s done (this will be discussed a little later on), but to do so, he has to complete as many heroic deeds for this. However, there is usually always a motive behind their Hero Complex: what would Rodimus’ motive be?

Thanks to this in-depth look into what causes someone to have a Hero Complex, we can gather what motives Rodimus may have and why he has the drive to be everyone’s hero.

“They are approval-seeking and require outward validation. A person who was unable to learn how to approve and validate their inner world will sometimes seek approval and validation from others to the point where they are willing to nearly die for it. Those who have this reason for their hero complex have inner worlds of insecurities abounding, and they need that other person or other people to help them feel like they’re worth something.”

This probably isn’t so obvious, but we do know that Rodimus hates himself (as confirmed by James Roberts) and seeks validation from others. He does reckless things because he knows that, if done right, people will praise him for it. So sure, the whole process of doing it, nobody really thinks that he’s doing this right... But the approval he gets from actually pulling off a dangerous stunt and the validation for being others’ heroes is enough for him.

The best example is at the very start of More Than Meets The Eye. He shoves the sparkeater into the quantum engines as they jumped and promptly saved his crew in doing so. He got the approval and praise from Drift, which was enough for him (clearly, since it didn’t bother him much when Ultra Magnus attempted to scold him for pulling off such a reckless move). Another time that applies this is also pretty early in the comics, where he sacrifices the Matrix - and nearly himself as well - to save all Cold Constructed Cybertronians. While he never got outright approval for such a risky action, and got a rather... Unpleasant reaction from Optimus (granted, he only mentioned that he broke his half of the Matrix), it still plays heavily into this.

Which brings me to the last point: Heroic Self-Deprecation. Just to clarify what this means:

“No matter how much they do for the world or what their loyal friends tell them, they're still incapable of believing that they're anything more than useless. Every little mistake leads to a massive display about how it's all their fault and how they're just not good enough.”

Now, one might think, “oh, Rodimus couldn’t have this, he’s too confident!”, but I beg to differ. If his backstory is anything to go by, he puts the entire world on his shoulders and holds up every little regret like it’s the end of the world if he doesn’t. What he does do well, he doesn’t seem to give himself enough credit for. Perhaps the key turning point for this was after issue 15, specifically, since he seemed to suffer from this more prominently since then...

In Dark Cybertron, the feeling that he’s not good enough is way too clear: this is highlighted in a few different parts, one namely being his conversation with Magnus before he left. When Magnus tells him he’s not a leader, Rodimus responds, “don't tell me that you can't do my job, because you can do my job - probably better than I can”. Now, while this may be true, he’s putting little to no faith in himself; not only that, but he blatantly ignores the obvious compliment that Magnus had given him. That was, I quote, “I haven't got-- whatever it is that you have. That extra something. I haven't got that”. There was something Rodimus had that Magnus didn’t that made him a more capable leader in Magnus’ perspective.

I think the worst part of it is during the rescue mission of Kup. No, really. It hurts me because I love both Rodimus and Optimus / Orion, but the exchange they have when Rodimus tells him about what he did and then how he handled it...

“I messed up. No, but I mean hugely. I smuggled a Decepticon prisoner on board the Lost Light and he escaped, and people died, and then I let my best friend take the blame... And after he left - I haven’t heard from him in ages - the guilt got the better of me and I ‘fessed up. First to Ultra Magnus, then the rest of the crew. I apologized. And after I said sorry, I invoked the Crisis Act.”

“You asked them to vote?”

“All of them, yeah - well, the 190 who were functional at the time. A referendum, really: ‘should I stay as captain? Yes or no.’”

“And here you are. Still captain.”

“Yes, but... Eighty-nine people wanted me gone. That’s why I carved the- y’know, in my hand. See? ‘S like a permanent note to self: ‘you gotta win ‘em back, Rodders.’”

...

“You could’ve resigned.”

“I, er... I what?”

“You should have resigned. You only invoked the Crisis Act because you thought you’d win. If you’d been truly ashamed of your actions, you’d have stepped down.”

“Um... I kinda thought it took more courage to stick it out?”

“Nonsense.”

“Um. Yeah.” ... “I was, um, sort of expecting the standard Optimus pep talk...? Nobody’s perfect, learn from your mistakes, that kind of thing?”

“I’m not here to absolve you of your guilt.”

(Conversation between Rodimus and Optimus. Dark Cybertron, Volume 2.)

While this is reconciled later on in the story (with Rodimus giving Optimus the pep talk; I’m so proud of him), it’s in this moment where there���s no praise. There’s no helping him. Nothing. It’s just Rodimus confessing everything, right from what he did to how he wants to get them back, and he’s actively seeking some comfort from his role model; he said so himself that Optimus is his role model. Sure, not exactly direct, but...

“You know who I always wanted to be, Orion? I’m talking all my life.”

“Yes - Rodimus Prime. And I’m sorry, but that makes you a fool. To actively want to be a Prime after the damage wrought by my predecessors...”

“You’re wrong. I never wanted to be ‘Rodimus Prime.’ Not deep down. Deep down, I always wanted to be you. The real you - not Orion Pax.”

(Part of a conversation between Rodimus and Optimus. Dark Cybertron, Volume 2.)

(And then, when the conversation ended and Rodimus was shot in the chassis by Nova, Optimus went into full dad mode. Because nobody shoots his son after he gives the pep talk and gets away with it. Looking at you, Nova Prime. I hope you feel many regrets.)

I feel like all of this, all of this right here, connects with his Heroic Self-Deprecation. He knows what he did, he knows that somehow, he has to win them all back, but at the same time... He wants to be like Optimus. He wants to have those same qualities that Optimus has and he knows that it’s impossible for him to have it, because he’s even scared to live by the decency, and the integrity, and the morality. But that’s not the point.

The point is, Rodimus thinks little of himself. He thinks so very little of himself, in fact, that he thinks that Magnus would be a better leader than him, even though he has that extra something. He got a pretty obvious thing, that he mostly like had thought of, smacked in his face by Optimus saying that he should’ve just given up because of that mistake. He thinks that, essentially, he’d be better off being someone else rather than himself. Rather than Rodimus, or even Hot Rod.

Now, let’s go onto the next one, shall we?

Rodimus has a serious case of being a brilliant mind, but being rather lazy. This does tend to make him seem stupid, but let’s just face it; he might never understand science, but he knows enough to come up with some pretty smart ideas. He might rush in at a moment’s notice, but he’s smarter than he looks overall. The definition of “Brilliant, But Lazy” is as follows:

“...you have the Brilliant, But Lazy character, who is more than capable of taking care of any situation that the heroes have to deal with, but doesn't care.”

It’s less that he doesn’t care, but more that he doesn’t like to deal with responsibility. When he does deal with it, he can be brash and quick to make assumptions, or he can be level headed for once and actually help out a bit better than most. However, it’s this dislike of responsibility that stems from a few various sources (after all, he already has a lot of burdens) that makes him seem lazy in nature. He’s capable, more than capable at the best of times. But even when he accepts the responsibility, it always seems like someone else is willing to stand in for him...

“... Need a scapegoat? Get an ex-Decepticon.”

“Well it’s not gonna happen. I’m taking the fall for this one. Your name doesn’t have to come into it. It’s taken you years to win back people’s trust, and you’re not throwing it all away on my behalf.”

...

“I won’t let you do this for me.”

“I’m not doing it for you. I’m doing it for everyone else.”

(Bits of the conversation between Rodimus and Drift about the inquiry related to the Overlord incident, in the prose story “The Sound of Breaking Glass”, MTMTE #21.)

Or, they push aside the fact that he’s taken responsibility for something because it’s just expected of him. That, or they think he’s doing it because there’s something about the situation that really calls for it, even though he has shown great promise as a responsible leader and warrior, behind the various levels of (faked) immaturity. He tends to shove it all onto Ultra Magnus, or Drift, or even Megatron when he arrives on the Lost Light - but for what?

This can be left up to interpretation, but for me, it’s linked to his Heroic Self-Deprecation. How, you might wonder? Well, he not only thinks little of himself, he’s sure others think little of him as well. Perhaps he just plays into everyone’s thoughts of him...

Which brings me to the trope I connect with this one; him faking his stupidity. He’s not an idiot. Actually, he’s far from it. He’s made smart decisions in the past that have saved his life, and even his reckless decisions have some sense in them. He has remarkable timing, he’s got sound strategies when he needs them, and he does know what he’s doing.

“Another variant is of someone who is a genuine genius but who pretends to be The Fool in order to avoid responsibility, either because they are lazy or because of some trauma which has undermined their confidence.”

Based on the quote above, I think it’s safe to say it’s a mixture of both.

He might not be a full-blown genius like Perceptor or Brainstorm, but he can play connect-the-dot in the right situations and he can make the right decisions when he needs it. For example, he was the sole reason that Nightbeat was able to break Nova Prime’s hold on him by asking him a simple question that forced Nightbeat to think. This was related to the numbers on his hand, a personal reminder that he needed to win back the 89 people of 190 active crew members that wanted him gone as captain. He knew Nightbeat couldn’t resist the right mystery.

But, just like that, I’m linking it back to his brilliant but lazy attitude; he shoves his responsibility on Drift, Magnus and Megatron, intentionally or not. And he’s stated once before, in the More Than Meets The Eye annual; “... Beneath my cocksure exterior I have incredibly low self-esteem”. Now, whether he was joking, and whether or not Ratchet realized this...

(Most likely not, since he seemed quick to dismiss this and claim that further beneath that, he does think he’s better than everyone else...)

... It’s possible - no, certain - that Rodimus hides it with layer upon layer of faked confidence and egotism. And that faked confidence and egotism links back to the mistakes he’s made and the Heroic Self-Deprecation, and THAT links to his brilliant but lazy attitude and his faking of stupidity. Because it seems like, whenever he is smart, people are surprised by it.

And if he can’t impress them, and it dents his self-esteem, then why bother being smart?

...

Let’s move onto the next one!

Rodimus is painfully aware that he has many flaws, and even more so aware of the fact that he has some very clear fatal flaws.

“Heroes have a Fatal Flaw which they wrestle with on a consistent basis. This may open them up for specific conflicts later...”

One could say his fatal flaw is his ego - but based on the evidence above (and that I’ve stated this literally a few paragraphs up), this ego seems to be a very extravagant cover-up for his lower self-esteem. Plus, he doesn’t quite fit the criteria to have his fatal flaw be egotism. This, ironically, seems to fit Getaway. No, Rodimus’ fatal flaw wouldn’t be egotism.

It’s one of two things: his impulsiveness, or his recklessness. Both are connected, however...

Let’s have a look at what TVTropes has to say.

“A Tragedy of Impulsiveness is when a tragedy is caused by someone's impetuousness or irrational impatience. This trope's power comes from the fact that if characters had thought before they acted the tragedy could have been avoided.”

This seems rather accurate. Perhaps it was also what Rodimus was referring to when he was talking to Drift at the end of Lost Light #7, when he said that he needed people like Drift and Ultra Magnus to keep him in check. And perhaps he’s right; his impulsive nature has gotten the crew into many unpleasant situations that derive from exactly that, and a lot of said situations tend to contain a tragedy in them. So, this as a fatal flaw makes perfect sense. Rodimus’ impulsiveness knows no bounds and he needs someone to regulate this.

But what about his recklessness as his fatal flaw?

(How lovely for TVTropes to title recklessness as “Leeroy Jenkins”. Funny video.)

“The Leeroy Jenkins (or just Leeroy for short) is a specific type of [person] who has no patience for complicated plans, preferring to charge full-tilt into the fray and start attacking whatever's in front of him.”

... Well, it’s not wrong.

Rodimus is notorious for running in without a plan. That, or his plans are to the extreme, and therefore are more suited to the trope called “Crazy Enough To Work”, since half of them actually do seem to work in his favor. (See: “Spotlight: Hot Rod”.) In general, however, Rodimus will think recklessly and make a frontal assault without really putting in the thought as to how it could all go wrong. Granted, the times he did so in prominent parts of the comic were in the Overlord arc, the Tyrest arc, during Dark Cybertron when it called for it, and of course, that one time Rodimus thought it was a brilliant idea to tackle one of the Functionists...

What may be obvious is that his impulsiveness and his recklessness tend to go hand-in-hand with each other. Actually, one tends to lead into the next, and it’s his biggest flaw. What’s further ironic is that his impulsiveness and recklessness, accompanied with his Chronic Hero Syndrome as mentioned much further above, are all reasons behind him falling into the trap...

Now, let’s look at his attitude, shall we?

“Virtually everyone has to wear a public mask in order to be accepted by others. That's a simple fact of human psychology. When circumstances (such as anonymity, strong emotion, or sufficient power) allow a character to take off that mask and act in complete accord with their inclinations, they reveal what's beneath the mask.”

Look, I won’t dismiss the fact that Rodimus does have confidence. I won’t dismiss the fact that he’s charismatic, and with a slight hint of an ego, and overall a fun guy that attracts others to him by being him. (After all, he and Megatron combined killed off the personality ticks due to there being too much charisma in one room...) However, you would have noticed that throughout the comics, it seems to have been enhanced to the point that it’s actually obnoxious and almost infuriating. You may have also noticed this started almost immediately when Megatron became co-captain of the Lost Light and after Dark Cybertron.

This was something told by James Roberts as well: Rodimus enhances his better parts of his personality to cover his self-hate. There’s nothing quite as simple as that. Rodimus is a strong character, in both physicality and mentality, but there’s only so much one can handle, especially after four million years of war.

This is somewhat of a coping mechanism for Rodimus. If he can’t voice his grief and even gets criticized for something that isn’t true (yes, Rung, looking at you; he really did feel like he failed the crew), then it’s better to hide it and say that he’s completely okay. Some may be able to look right through him, others will take it the wrong way and think that he’s just being childish. In retrospect, turn to the very start of the comic series. He was more like himself; charismatic, somewhat confident, a slight ego. He didn’t act the way he does now back then.

In turn, this leads me to my next point.

“A person you would expect to be a big Jerkass has some redeeming qualities behind their tough demeanor. Occasionally, they'll try to make it a Hidden Heart of Gold.”

It’s no secret that Rodimus has acted like a jerk, even in the newest issues; and, unfortunately for our poor learning speedster captain, it’s had an everlasting effect on a few people. One of those people namely being Brainstorm, having adjusted so poorly to Rodimus’ usual reactions to his work that he even has to explain himself to Cyclonus...

“You see? You see? That’s what success looks like! Swerve and Ten, plucked from a pocket prison and delivered, safe and sound, to your welcoming arms. And to think - to think! - you said it couldn’t be done.”

“On the contrary, I said I was confident you’d find a way to bring them back. In fact, I’ve been nothing but supportive since I brought you the wand.”

“Oh. Yeah, sorry. Thanks to Rodimus I’m conditioned to expect incomprehension, mockery and boredom - usually in the span of thirty seconds.”

(Conversation between Brainstorm and Cyclonus, Lost Light #5.)

So yes, Rodimus has screwed up a lot by acting like a jerk. However, I firmly believe that it isn’t intentional, and that his mouth runs faster than his thoughts do. It doesn’t excuse the behavior, and I could provide plenty of examples where he was a downright jerk. For example, when he said that he had “rehabilitated” Drift (yes, how smart of you to say, Rodimus), or when he attempted a joke about Tailgate’s face being punchable during the Brainstorm arc...

But, he really does have a heart of gold. Or, a spark of gold, in this context. In which a heart of gold is an expression that means “to be very kind and generous”. Synonyms vary from considerate, to well-meant, to supportive and good-natured.

Rodimus cares deeply about his crew members, and I will elaborate on such later on, but he is willing to do what it takes to make up for his actions. He doesn’t quite have the hidden heart of gold like Whirl, for example, because it can be so damn obvious that Rodimus has this wonderful heart of gold for his crew members. Let’s take, for example, not only the prose story “The Sound of Breaking Glass”, but also MTMTE #36. Oh yes, that issue. That one issue. Where Rodimus tried, with all his power, to make sure that Trailbreaker would live in the future.

But first! In the prose story, Rodimus is shown being kind and good-natured towards Red Alert, who had just been woken up after his suicide incident - which Rodimus put upon himself. This is in front of Getaway and Fortress Maximus, too, but he’s kind of... Subtle.

“Red Alert?”

“Captain, I want to apologize for--”

“Stop right there. No apologies. Not on my ship.”

“But I can’t imagine the inconvenience I caused by my decision to, um, remove myself from the field of play.”

“Nonsense. You were under tremendous pressure. Okay, so you didn’t feel able to confide in me, but that says more about my failings as a leader than anything else.”

...

“My point, Rodimus, is that I’d like to stay here ... What are they called, Legislators? We could reprogram the Legislators to act as the moon’s protectors.”

“I think with you and Fort Max, Luna 1 is going to be in safe hands. Just promise to stay in touch!”

(Conversation between Red Alert and Rodimus, “The Sound of Breaking Glass”, Issue #21.)

Based on the meaning behind having a heart of gold, it does shine through here. Whether or not the others present register it (a part of me feels like Getaway was too silent in this moment, which is both understandable since he wasn’t involved in the conversation, but concerning...), Rodimus clearly cares. And clearly, he knows that being on Luna 1 is better for Red Alert.

Now, Issue #36. How many of you remember the despair Rodimus had when he saw that Chromedome had shaken hands with Trailbreaker and ultimately erased his memory of the previous conversation he had with him? The conversation that would’ve ultimately allowed for Trailbreaker to live in the future? A lot of you might find that moment memorable (at least, I do. Roddy was incredibly hurt because it was his only chance to avoid the needless death), and/or very painful to reflect on, but that conversation he had before showed his kindness.

“Will you do that for me? It’s very important.”

“Sure. Whatever.”

“Trailbreaker.”

“Ofsted XVII. Stay inside the ship. Got it.”

... “You’re a good person.”

(MTMTE #36, conversation between Rodimus and Trailbreaker in the past.)

What really gets me is that Rodimus even went out of his way to tell Chromedome to not shake hands with Trailbreaker, no matter what, even though he never said why. Mostly because one isn’t supposed to be tinkering with time (because Rodimus, you’re not supposed to change the future, even if you really want to), but it shows he cares. It even proves his kindness and his consideration, even. He most likely puts himself at fault for Trailbreaker as well, even though he had nothing to do with it; after all, Trailbreaker was a member of his ship.

This will be used as an example for his “Father To His Men” attitude, but let’s continue.

The Atoner. Now, this trope quite literally makes up Drift’s entire character, but this applies to Rodimus in a very specific context. He wants to atone for whatever he’s done in the past. This isn’t just relating to Overlord, either; this can be seen in a variety of different lights. Though, the real problem is that Rodimus doesn’t necessarily fit into The Atoner by definition of the trope.

“The Atoner is an evil character who has realized the error of his ways, possibly wants to make amends, and has decided that they will do so via heroic deeds. Simple imprisonment won't do, because it does nothing to make recompense for what he's done wrong.”

The trope clearly specifies this is for a character that was once bad turned good, and seeking out redemption for the past sins that have been committed. Which is why, while Rodimus does want to atone for his mistakes, he just doesn’t quite fall into this category. This is very much suited to Drift rather than Rodimus, though the elements behind it make it favorable...

He’s more suited to the category of “My Greatest Failure”. By definition, given via TVTropes:

“Nothing defines a hero better than his morals, and the biggest sympathy point can be guilt over some monumental screw-up that taught the hero to buckle down and stop taking his job too lightly.”

So, the last part didn’t quite follow through like he intended to, but in MTMTE #21, Rodimus tells Ultra Magnus the truth behind Overlord and how he wished to make amends for it.

“Magnus-- (I’m gonna call you Magnus.) Magnus, if this is it - it I’m going to die - I need to come clean. Everything you’ve just said - I’ve done worse. I’ve done much worse. I brought Overlord on board. I was part of it, with Drift and Brainstorm and the Duobots. I let it happen. Prowl said I owed it to the Autobots. Before we left Cybertron, he... We met in his office, and he told me he wanted an Autobot Phase Sixer - somebody as powerful as Overlord, but on our side. And then he said-- These might not have been his exact words, but he said if I was scared of having Overlord on board I could say no, which... Well. Here we are.”

...

“I don’t want to die.”

“Of course not. Of course you don’t.”

“No, I mean-- Self-sacrifice, Magnus - it’s cheap. It’s a cheap way out. I need to live so I can make amends and--”

(Conversation between Rodimus and Minimus Ambus/Ultra Magnus. MTMTE #21.)

The idea behind “My Greatest Failure” is that they feel incredibly guilty over a gigantic screw-up and they start taking their job seriously again. While Rodimus does feel insanely guilty over the fact that it was his fault Overlord was on board, it doesn’t mean he stops taking his job lightly. That’s thanks to his personality, however. However, his need - not want, need - to live to make amends? It’s what fits him into the Atoner trope. He knows what he did was wrong and he desperately wants to fix it. He does make some amends with Drift, with their reunion...

“I don’t trust myself with words - they’re too easy to manipulate. But you taught me that there are a dozen better ways to speak to someone. If you read my aura, or listen to the timbre of my voice, or look at the colors in my eyes... If you do any of those things you’ll understand how bad I feel - and how badly I want things to be like they were.”

(Part of the reunion conversation, said by Rodimus. MTMTE #52.)

I adore this little bit of conversation. And while I am a little upset that there was only one page dedicated to their reunion and their need to talk out the radio silence and so on (seriously, it had been three years since Drift left - you can imagine how bad Rodimus felt without his best friend around, and at his fault too), this really touched me. Not only does Rodimus try and make amends for his banishing of Drift, but he does so through telling Drift to analyse how he says things and what his body language tells him.

And so, Rodimus is kind of a mixture of the two tropes, though contrasting one another. But let’s not dwell on these contradicting tropes for too long and move onto the second last points I have.

“My God, What Have I Done?” and “It’s All My Fault” go hand-in-hand. They usually follow from one into the other, and this is so very prominent in not only the Overlord arc, but he has a literal moment in the Functionist Universe arc in Lost Light. The meaning behind the two are:

“My God, What Have I Done?” - “Well-intentioned but misguided character ... comes to realize that his actions have caused incredible damage, physical pain, emotional pain, or even loss of life.”

“It’s All My Fault” -  “You see characters blaming themselves for major messes fairly often, especially when they're not the only ones who are suffering as a result. It's a universal phrase used in every genre and medium.”

Rodimus has this moment a few too many times, and it ties into his Heroic Self-Deprecation, for the most part. The two most obvious moments are, of course, after the Overlord incident and he talks to Drift about the inquiry (as so in “The Sound of Breaking Glass”), and during the Functionist Universe arc, soon after he decided to punch alternate Rung.

Let’s see, did he say either of the two phrases in the first example?

“I had to do something! People were asking questions! And what do you do if you want to stall things? You launch an inquiry.” ... “An inquiry into something I’m responsible for. Oh god. Oh god, I feel sick. I’ve messed up big time.”

“I can sort this out, Rodimus. Honestly, I can fix this.”

“This is my fault, not yours. We were standing in Prowl’s office, and he was trying to convince me that bringing Overlord on board was ‘right and proper’, and you called me an idiot for even considering it.”

(Conversation between Rodimus and Drift, “The Sound of Breaking Glass”. MTMTE #21.)

... Well. Looks like he says both of the phrases, even though worded a little differently. This is important: Rodimus knows he’s responsible, and he knows that technically Drift is responsible for it too, but he’s more than willing to take on all of the blame and avoid getting anyone else involved. Or, more like, he feels like it’s all his fault and he knows he’s messed up horribly...

Alright, how about the dialogue about alternate Rung? Now, this is more or less just focusing on the whole “what have I done” aspect instead.

“I’m serious, Rodimus. I need the Cog to destroy Luna 2, and I won’t let you stop me. I can’t.”

“If that’s how it is...” ... “Fine!”

“What the hell are you doing?!”

“I...” “... I...” “... What the hell am I doing?”

(Rewind snaps some sense into Rodimus. Lost Light #6.)

Now, this is a less minor occasion, but the trope still applies. Rodimus has caused physical pain to alt. Rung, just because he was so desperate to get to Luna 2 so he could get home. And, because of that, he made an impulsive and reckless decision to punch alt. Rung in the face.

This also heavily ties in with his Atoner-like personality where he feels obligated to make amends for what he had done. It was why he was so quick to tell everyone to get off the Cog while he remained behind, to make sure that the Cog found its target... And while yes, it’s implied that perhaps he was thinking of self-sacrifice, he’s crashed ships into things before and survived it. (See: that one time Hot Rod stole Magnus’ ship to re-retrieve the Matrix.)

So, in case you haven’t quite understood what I’ve said so far: each of these tropes feed into one another.

Fatal Flaw(s) (Impulsiveness + Recklessness) > It’s All My Fault / My God, What Have I Done > The Atoner / My Greatest Failure > Chronic Hero Syndrome / Hero Complex / Heroic Self-Deprecation > Brilliant, But Lazy / Obfuscating Stupidity > Beneath the Mask / Jerk With A Heart Of Gold.

Can you see how they all interconnect with one another?

And now, drumroll, for the very last trope that I want to talk about (finally!)............ And now we shall talk about his attitude as a Father To His Men!

Now, hear me out. Rodimus is technically not cut out for this trope. He has trouble remembering his crew, and he has his moments where he seems to have blatant disregard for them. He’s just that bit too much of a jerk, though unintentionally, to make this work. Optimus fills this role so much better than Rodimus does. However, he has his moments shine through.

Now, I wish to give you a few snippets from the page that stands out.

“This commander cares deeply about his men and exhibits it constantly. A mentor to the officers under him, he takes a deep personal interest in their welfare and tries to keep them out of harm's way.”

“This character generally cultivates a father-figure atmosphere. He is a source of morale, discipline and stability.”

“He will accept responsibility for any mistakes, even if it was not entirely his fault, especially if the failure would result in severe punishment for a subordinate.”

... Which are all, unfortunately, not true in Rodimus’ case.

While he does care about his crew, and very much so, he does a horrible job of keeping them out of harm’s way. A constant example is convincing Chromedome to inject when he needs it, so he can ultimately help the others, while not being any help at all to Chromedome. Another example is Overlord, since it was a last minute decision that put many in harm’s way.

He’s far from the second snippet. In fact, it sounds more like Optimus. Optimus gives off a father-figure atmosphere. Rodimus even stated himself, Optimus defined what the title of Prime really meant during Dark Cybertron. Optimus is this snippet, but this is what Rodimus wants to be. He wants to be the source of morale, discipline and stability, but he can’t be - because he’s none of those things. He’s far from it, actually. And he knows it.

The last point is a little iffy for Rodimus. He was prepared to do it once, for Drift, but I cannot recall another time he was willing to take the full blame for something that wasn’t solely his fault. The only reason he didn’t go through with it was because Drift insisted he left instead...

So, why am I talking about this trope when it doesn’t seem like it fits Rodimus?

Because, out of all the tropes possible, this is the one trope Rodimus aspires to have. He wants to keep his crew safe. He wants to be the perfect role model and he wants to be the one to take on any responsibility regardless, because he just won’t let them take it instead. The only thing that’s holding him back is his own fatal flaws. His impulsiveness and recklessness hold him back from being this kind of figure to his crew. He has the heart of gold to make it work, but Rodimus doesn’t have the right level of... Well, maturity, perhaps. But he also makes poor decisions, and they usually come at the cost of the crew. And he gets in the way of himself.

And so, overall, Rodimus has a very fleshed out character. These tropes may be common, but they make up most of his character, and they’re all so important in their own way. And, in a way, they all affect how I portray Rodimus. He’s not always immature, he might say something insensitive here and there but he never really means it...

He really is trying to do the best for himself and his crew. It’s just too much for him right now.