#zx protagonists: HUH??

[legendarybelmont]

i feel like the fact that giro is a shady, cringe liar is a very undervalued and underused aspect of his character in fandom despite the fact he very much is all that. sure hes semi-responsible but he canonically completely lies to vent about how he met model z (confirmed in zx tunes soundtrack notes), for one thing, and even then if you arent a vent truther he very pointedly didnt tell aile jackshit until it was quite literally forced from him. he was more frank than he was with vent, actually telling her he was a guardian, but even then he was as vague as possible, as is shown with prairie and how she has to tell aile later on that giro watched over her primarily (at first) thanks to orders from ciel. not to mention how giro talks about model x in response to questioning in the intro -- "im sure its very powerful and very dangerous. its probably better we (you) dont know". brushing off all inquiry, making it very obvious he never intended to tell or show the protagonists a thing in the first place. if he wasnt forced into it, he probably wouldve kept omitting everything about himself to them, basically! indefinitely! and, of course, theres how he tells at least vent to deal with his salt regarding slither inc. in summary, "be as salty as you want, but dont show it in town, they arent going to like it". this is very shady. he is not an upstanding citzen. girouette consistently withholds information and even outright lies (and ropes others into said lies, poor fucking vent, EVERYONE was in on it) about incredibly important things, and he is generally quite a shady person, running a vaguely illegal transport company/front for a paramilitary organisation, as well as the literal opaque visor in his megaman transformation implying a need or desire for anonymity, especially with how in the manga vent doesnt recognise giro on sight. also in the manga, giro is shown to be incredibly blase about the whole megaman thing when he talks to vent at first, in, coupled with his other behaviours, is what i assume an effort to throw him off and downplay the importance of the situation, as usual. hes also really cringe in the manga too btw its great i hate him who says "YO" after dropping the craziest bombshell of vents life on him all casually

girouette is not a very honest person, and this is true ESPECIALLY in vents route. i can only assume that raising vent, an incredibly precocious and easily aggravated person, made his existing tendencies worse than how they ended up with aile, who he seems more open with, if only for her calmer personality in comparison. i wish this was more commonly depicted with him :( he is usually just watered down to 'responsible father figure' and like, yeah, sure, whatever, but hes a lying liar who lies! and hes vague and occasionally facetious! and he is so shady even just in his vibes! come on guys i swear hes such an interesting character when you look past the impression he is actively trying to project

p.s: yeah sure, his open affection with aile is cool and all, but what about his strained but very present and existing care for vent, that he yet feels the need to hide beneath numerous layers of deflection and faux-challenge? the care that, apparently, for some reason, he feels he cant express so blatantly as he does with aile, perhaps because he feels vent wouldnt appreciate it? and such. vent is also incredibly underrated. vent and giros dynamic, something that informs so much of giros character, actually, really is kind of forgotten huh. the price of aile-centric fandom. love aile tho

[tastycitrus]

you know, thinking about it, we learned about the three cancelled sequels in the reverse order of when they actually happened

legends 3 being canned was a big thing that was announced when it happened, we learned about star force 4 in 2019 but we know it was canned after star force 3 and operate shooting star both flopped which happened before legends 3 got canned, and for christmas we learned about ZXC which was canned after ZXA failed to meet its 100k sales goal which happened before SF3 and OSS came out

there’s no punchline here, i just meme to cope

[klapollopilled]

Guess who found the (possibly) most ridiculous Megaman article ever. (WARNING: VERY LONG.)

So I was scrolling down Google because I was bored, I have a tendency to type in some of my favorite things onto the search bar and see what comes up, in this case, I typed in something like "megaman x zero" or something, this was like... 5 months ago? Shortly before I started using Tumblr.

Now, this particular article came up after pressing the "more results" button a couple of times, a little bit of context: I'm from Indonesia, so I dunno whether it was just because Google knows where I live that caused the article to show up quickly.

The article was on an Indonesian site called "KINCIR", a site I rarely visited, if I'm being honest, it was called, "7 Karakter Terbaik dari Franchise Mega Man yang Sangat Ikonis", which translates to "7 Iconic Characters from the Mega Man Franchise."

Anyway, I decided to read the article, and hoo boy, this was an amusing read.

Here's a link, I'll be copy-pasting parts of the article and then translating it into English.

(PS: The article was published on the 10th of October last year, and just for the sake of it I'm gonna point out the numerous mistakes the article made, after typing out the translation of each section.)

Trust me, I was cringing all throughout the proccess of reading this.

ORIGINAL:

"Menyambut perilisan game baru Mega Man 11 yang rilis di awal bulan ini, gimana kalau kita sedikit retrospeksi mengenal lagi karakter-karakter ikonis yang ada di waralaba ini? Beberapa karakter tersebut adalah protagonis maupun antagonis yang kita temukan di dalam gamenya. Nuansa dunia futuristik dan karakter robot dengan senjata canggih membuat serial ini memang jadi favorit banyak orang."

TRANSLATION:

"Welcoming the release of Mega Man 11 that will release early this month, what if we did a little retrospective on the iconic characters from this franchise? Some of these characters can be protagonists and/or antagonists that we see in the games, the nuance of a futuristic world and robotic characters with sophisticated weapons makes this series a favorite of many people."

Doesn't seem too far off the mark, until we get into the actual list itself...

ORIGINAL:

1. Mega Man/X

"Karakter biru yang menjadi ikon Mega Man ini akhirnya mendapatkan kode yang menjadi namanya yaitu, X di salah satu game terbaiknya, Mega Man ZX. Sebelumnya, kita mengenal robot biru ini dengan sebutan Mega Man saja atau Rockman untuk serial dari Jepang. Dia adalah wajah waralaba game yang sudah populer sejak 30 tahun lalu. Di hampir semua gamenya, kemampuannya untuk bisa menembakkan energi dari tangan kanannya enggak berubah dan jadi ciri khas yang bikin dia sangat terkenal. Wajar saja kalau dia jadi langganan kalau Mega Man diangkat ke seri crossover seperti Smash Bros atau Marvel VS Capcom."

TRANSLATION:

1. Mega Man/X

"The blue character that has become the icon of Mega Man finally recieved the code that changed him into X in one of the greater games in the series, Mega Man ZX, before that, we knew the blue robot as just Mega Man, or Rockman in Japan, he is the face of a franchise that has been popular for 30 years, in almost all of his games, his main ability is being able to shoot balls of energy from his right hand, this has never changed and has made him more well-known, it's only fair that he is used a lot in other games like Smash Bros. and Marvel vs. Capcom."

ISSUES:

-Ahhh, yes, claiming that X and Rock are the same character is surely a great way to start the list!

-"...changed his name to X in one of he greater games in the series, Mega Man ZX.", Apparently the X series doesn't exist, even so, again, X and the original Mega Man are not the same character.

-Minor nitpick here, but according to the article, "his main ability is being able to shoot small balls of energy from his right hand", with no mention whatsoever to his Buster.

ORIGINAL:

2. Zero

"Karakter protagonis yang biasanya muncul pertama sebagai penjahat ini bisa dibilang sebagai karakter terbaik dan paling keren. Kepribadiannya yang acuh tak acuh ini jadi tekanan cerita yang menarik. Meski X selalu berusaha menjadi teman untuknya, Zero selalu menganggap dirinya sebagai lone wolf alias enggak perlu orang lain untuk mendukungnya. Di beberapa kesempatan, Zero jadi karakter sekunder yang bisa pemain pakai untuk bertualang. Ini mengganti sudut pandang pertarungan menjadi terkesan lebih beat-em-up karena senjata dan kemampuan Zero yang bertumpu pada jarak dekat."

TRANSLATION:

2. Zero

"A protagonist who first appeared as a villain is now arguably one of the greatest and coolest characters, his indifferent personality is a compelling part of the story. Although X tries to be friendly towards him, Zero always sees himself as a lone wolf who doesn't need anyone to support him. On several occasions, he is a secondary playable character that players can use, this changes the gameplay to a more "beat-em-up" style because his weapons have a shorter range."

ISSUES:

-This seems more like a miswording, but Zero did not debut as a villain, rather he originated as one, but we were not shown until X4.

-"...he always thinks of himself as a lone wolf who doesn't need anyone to support him." Sigh... Y'know what? Lemme throw in some quotes said by the Maverick Hunter himself.

"You don't need to worry. Even though we are far away, I have a feeling that I've been protected by his power. We'll get through this." -Zero in Xtreme 2, to Iris, referring to X.

"So be it... But that's why we are the best partners... I'll do what you want... Rest for a while. I will handle it, you can count on me. I won't stop! When an enemy appears... I'll terminate it..." -Zero in Mega Man Zero, to X.

...What did you say about him being a lone wolf and not needing any support from others, author?

ORIGINAL:

3. Dr. Light & Dr. Willy

"Sebagai robot, Mega Man diciptakan oleh dua ilmuwan yakni Dr. Light dan Dr. Willy. Pemain akan menemukan Dr. Light sebagai sosok ayah yang mengenalkan Mega Man kepada dunia dan kelihatan tampil sebagai hologram yang membantu Mega Man dalam perjalanannya. Dia menjadi tokoh yang memberikan Mega Man senjata-senjata baru untuk membantu Mega Man menyelesaikan petualangannya.

Di lain sisi, Dr. Willy adalah antagonis dan mantan asisten Dr. Light yang cemburu karena namanya enggak bersinar dan orang hanya mengingat sosok Thomas Light. Kecemburuannya menuntun dia untuk memprogram ulang Mega Man untuk membantunya mengambil alih dunia. Untungnya, Mega Man mendapat pencerahan dari Light lewat sistem back-up dan meraih kesadarannya untuk menggagalkan rencana Dr. Willy."

TRANSLATION:

3. Dr. Light & Dr. Willy

"As a robot, Mega Man was created by two scientists, namely Dr. Light and Dr. Willy. Players will find Dr. Light as a father figure to Mega Man who introduced him to the world and appears as a hologram to help Mega Man on his journey, he gives Mega Man new weapons to help on his adventure.

On the other hand, Dr. Willy is the antagonist of the series and the former assistant of Dr. Light, who became jealous because Light got all the recognition, his jealousy lead him to reprogram Mega Man to help him take over the world. Thankfully, Mega Man was brought back to his original programming by Dr. Light through a back-up system and thwarted Dr. Willy's plans."

ISSUES:

-"Mega Man was created by two scientists, namely Dr. Light and Dr. Willy."

Uhhh...Proto Man much?

-D'you wanna know why I made Willy bold? IT'S BECAUSE IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE "WILY", WITH ONE L! THE AUTHOR COULDN'T GET HIS NAME RIGHT! I wouldn't even be mad if it was spelt as "Wiley", given that some official materials spell his name that way.

-"appears as a hologram...he gives new weapons to help Mega Man on his adventure."

Um, nope, sorry, that's X, and he doesn't really give out new weapons, he gives out armor parts.

-"Dr. Willy is the antagonist of the series and the former assistant of Dr. Light."

Again, minor nitpick, but they were colleauges, working together, on the same level.

-"...His jealousy lead him to reprogram Mega Man to help him take over the world."

Quint? What are you doing here? This doesn't happen untill much later!

-"Thankfully, he was brought back to his original programming by Dr. Light through a back-up system-"

Just...no.

ORIGINAL:

4. Shadow

"Selain Zero, tokoh antagonis yang juga jadi baik dan membantu Mega Man dalam petualangannya adalah sosok Shadow atau Shadow Man. Salah satu robot humanoid yang mempunyai kemampuan dan ciri khas seperti ninja ini bisa dimainkan oleh pemain dalam beberapa kesempatan. Dia punya kemampuan unik untuk kebal dari duri dan bisa melemparkan senjata khusus ang membantu Mega Man dan Zero untuk berjalan lebih jauh."

TRANSLATION:

4. Shadow

"Besides Zero, another antagonist that later reformed was Shadow or Shadow Man. A humanoid robot who reseembles and has the characteristics of a ninja who can ocassionally be playable, he has the special ability to be immume to spikes and can throw special weapons that help Mega Man and Zero go further."

ISSUES:

-If you read the article via the link, you should know that the article seems to be talking about Shadow from Command Mission and Shadow Man from Mega Man 3 as if they were the same character, and yet they use a picture of X'S SHADOW ARMOR in the article...oh god.

-How the hell is Shadow OR Shadow Man an antagonist turned good guy?

-They aren't playable, unless the author is talking about the Shadow Armor, even then the Shadow Armor isn't a character.

-"...can throw special weapons that help Mega Man and Zero go further."

Huh?

ORIGINAL:

5. Fenri Lunaedge

"Banyak karakter baru yang berubah di jalan cerita yang berkembang di dunia Mega Man. Ini berdampak kepada perubahan karakter-karakter musuh yang diganti di beberapa kesempatan. Semenjak serial Mega Man memperkenalkan jalan cerita Mega Man - X ada komplotan penjahat yang dikenal dengan sebutan Mutos Reploid. Sala satu Mutos Reploid yang paling ikonis adalah Fenri yang berwujud serigala. Dengan bisa memanipulasi es, setiap stage bernuansa dunia salju pasti berkesan kalau kita bisa menemukan Fenri di akhir perjalanannya."

TRANSLATION:

5. Fenri Lunaedge

"There are many new characters that change in the Mega Man storyline, this impacts the enemies that are changed in the games occasionally, after the Mega Man universe introduced the Mega Man X storyline, there's a gang of villains known as the Mutos Reploids, one of the most iconic Mutos Reploids is Fenri, who takes the form of a wolf and can manipulate ice, each stage with the nuance of snow is truly memorable if we can find Fenri at the end of the journey."

ISSUES:

-Oh, so the X series does exist, BUT FENRI'S A ZERO CHARACTER!

-"The enemies that are changed in the games occasionally."

Uhhh, if you mean regular bosses, those are changed nearly every game.

-Ever since when were the Mutos Reploids a gang?

-That part around the end...huh?

ORIGINAL:

6. Proto-Man

"Selain X dan adiknya, Roll, Dr. Light juga menciptakan salah satu robot yang sangat kuat yakni Proto-Man. Dia adalah robot pertama yang dibuat oleh Dr. Light. Untungnya, Proto Man jadi sosok kakak yang mendukung Mega Man untuk bisa mengalahkan Dr. Willy dan enggak menjadi jahat. Kekuatannya yang bisa dibilang cukup kuat dia gunakan untuk kebaikan. Meski bersembunyi dalam bayang-bayang, Proto-Man akan datang membantu X ketika dia dibutuhkan."

TRANSLATION:

6. Proto-Man

"Other than X and his younger sister, Roll, Dr. Light also created an exceptionally powerful robot named Proto Man, he was the first robot Dr. Light had ever built, Proto Man is an older brother to Mega Man who supports him in defeating Dr. Wily and has never become an enemy, he instead keeps using his power for good, although he hides in the shadows, he helps X when it's necessary."

ISSUES:

-Author, please understand that Mega Man and X are different characters.

-Roll is not really a younger sister, she was built alongside Rock, technically making her his twin.

-"...has never become an enemy." Break Man would like to talk with you.

ORIGINAL:

7. Omega

"Dalam cerita yang ada di Mega Man, ada satu ciptaan Dr. Willy yang sangat berbahaya. Dia adalah Omega, reploid yang diciptakan untuk menyatukan dunia baru yang dikontrol oleh robot. Dengan kekuatan dan ukuran yang sangat besar, Omega jadi salah satu Boss penting di beberapa seri seperti Megaman 3 dan Megaman ZX. Dia juga bisa menjadi Omega Fusion yang dibentuk dari X, Zero dan dirinya sendiri yang membuatnya jadi reploid paling kuat dan bisa menghancurkan apapun."

TRANSLATION:

7. Omega

"In Mega Man lore, there's a particular creation of Dr. Wily who is extremely dangerous, he is Omega, a Reploid created to make a world ruled by robots. With his great strength and size, Omega has become an important boss in several games like Mega Man 3 and Mega Man ZX. He can also fuse with X and Zero to become an even stronger Reploid that is capable of destroying everything."

ISSUES:

-Omega wasn't created by Dr. Wily, he was already long dead by then, he was created by Dr. Weil.

-Omega didn't even exist in the time of Mega Man 3, let alone be a boss in that game.

-Omega cannot fuse with other Reploids, the article may be referring to the Biometals, but even then, only Model X can fuse with other Biometals, and it is impossible for a 3-Biometal-Fusion if I remember correctly.

Whoever wrote this article must've not actually touched enough lore to make this list, I'm not trying to insult the author, I'm just saying it's very misinformative.

And why have weird choices like Shadow and Fenri Lunaedge? They aren't nearly as iconic as Tron Bonne, Green Biker Dude, Bass, Axl or Lan, have you ever met someone, asked them, "do you know what Mega Man is?" And hear them reply with, "Oh yeah! That video game series with Fenri Lunaedge!"

This list was weird.