the-one-and-only-taffie

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

this callout couldve been a block button

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

D-16 was happy in his misery because he had Orion by his side. But for Orion D-16 was not enough... He always wanted more...

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

ramblings about transformations & alt forms in TFO

i might make a series out of general analysis about TFO because i've watched this so many times with different lenses i have a lot to say. i ESPECIALLY would want to do a leitmotif/sound design analysis, if i have the time.

here's some ramblings from twitter that were disjointed by the word count but streamlined here for archival purposes.

ALT FORMS + VEHICLES

D-16/Megatron gets bulkier and bigger and a literal weapon of mass destruction - he becomes a tank because he becomes a war machine.

Optimus is a truck with a backpart allowing others to ride him because he values cooperation and comraderie in his fighting style. A truck is reliable, bulky, and becomes a foundational vehicle for transport.

Elita values agility and maneuverability above all else. This has shone in both her vehicle form but also throughout the movie in the way that she moves. She utilises the environment to her advantage to get out of the way in the trash train for example, and easily swings and jumps her way through the boxes.

Bee has an innocent fantasy tied to his transformations. He's not just any car -- he's a RACECAR. He has fancy wheels, and a cool visor and windshield. All of his subsequent transformations makes him look like a superhero, protective armour and weapons that are tied to fantasy and romanticised ideas of combat, than Megatron's pragmatic, or even BRUTAL approach to violence.

This is further compounded in megop's FINAL TRANSFORMATIONS.

D-16 makes himself PHYSICALLY bigger. to the point where he lifts Sentinel -- who is supposed to be twice his size cogless -- easily and bisects him. Megatron perpetuates the cycle of becoming an overbearing dictator by becoming larger, becoming stronger like Sentinel so he can stand AT ODDS with Sentinel. When he transforms and takes Megatronus' cog you can see it VISIBLY being covered by a larger two-piece plate as he transforms.

Orion on the other hand asides from being slightly taller, isn't all that much different from his cogless self. As Optimus, his chest-plate is made of glass, transparent and showing his heart of gold, the matrix, his emotions being worn on his sleeve.

In terms of CINEMATOGRAPHY...

Orion squats down when talking to his fellow miners, and sees them eye to eye. Megatron on the other hand stands above, and most shots when he becomes Megatron he LOOKS DOWN or the camera is LOOKING UP at him. This further shows the disparaty between their characters. Orion, then Optimus remaining down to earth whilst D16 fully becomes what he despises.

Also another small detail that I really like is that in addition to going with the legacy design of the tank alt-form for Meg is that none of the miners become flying vehicles. Orion uses a booster to jump off a building because he's used to using jetpacks when he returns to Iacon. Megatron leaves Iacon city as a tank, whilst the High Guard follow him as planes.

This further emphasises the humble backgrounds they're from and how they struggle to adjust and grow up in the cruel world they're forced to change.

Anyways yeah thanks for reading. If there's lots of love on this post I might make more bc this took forever to format ngl my brain is very scattered

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

Disclaimer: Fanfiction is for fun times and it doesn't have to be "good" to exist and be shared!! Also just like all advice in the world YMMV (your mileage may vary) and the fact is that the best writing advice is whatever gets you writing!

STEP ONE of good characterization:

YOU ARE NOT THE CHARACTER. THE CHARACTER IS NOT YOU. STOP RELATING TO THE CHARACTER.

They do not think the way you think. They will not react the way you react. They don't have your morals, preferences, tastes, fashion sense, etc etc etc.

You are not the guy.

You must appreciate them as a separate person. Only once you have separated them from yourself in your heart can you start on the road to knowing your blorbo....

STEP TWO of good characterization:

When asking any question about the character at all, START FROM CANON.

If the exact answer is not in the canon, pick the CLOSEST scenario / fact / interaction, and work from there.

Example: Blorbo has never seen Glup Shitto held at gunpoint. But Blorbo was really angry when Glup Shitto's diary was stolen, and freaked out during another life or death situation.

Held at gunpoint is like 10x more fucked up than the diary so make Blorbo's like 10x angrier and similarly freaked out.

STEP THREE of good characterization:

For details that are not addressed at all in canon, use THEMES, GENRE, and CHARACTER ARCHETYPE/ROLE to create a believable rendition of the character.

Don't forget to include any quirks that significantly set them apart from similar characters when choosing these things btw.

Your BRILLIANT POWERFUL SCIENTIST may have dark polished hardwood furniture that speaks to sophistication but show her love of travel with tchotchkes from around the world.

Your ANGTSY MANPAIN MAN may choose military combat gear but wear pink socks because his daughter picked them out.

Your MANIC PIXIE DREAM GUY may love jogging with his cute dog in the park but reveals hints of a DARK PAST in his music playlist. And in the gun he keeps in his fanny pack.

Don't forget that other characters likely have their own knowledge and opinions of blorbo that you can draw from. If Glup Shitto is consistently wrong about blorbo and thinks blorbo is probably a good cook, make blorbo a bad cook. If Glup Shitto is blorbo's childhood best friend and used to play doll murder courthouse a lot, it's a good stretch to say that blorbo may have played doll murder courthouse as a child too, and this was something they did together.

STEP FOUR of good characterization:

DO A LITTLE RESEARCH!!

The character almost certainly hasn't taken the exact life path as you. If they are from a different area, look into cultural norms that may differ from yours.

No one is expecting you to be the foremost scholar on Japanese etiquette or British regional slang, but a little can go a long way.

People in places with socialized healthcare should not be worrying about medical bills, blorbos in tropical areas will not experience the seasons as much as you might, other cultures attitudes towards nudity/sex/drugs may be wildly different to yours.

IF you actually have relevant experience then feel free to use it in your fics. But don't forget that you are not the guy! Really think through how their perspective may differ even in the same situation.

STEP FIVE of good characterization:

PUT LOVE INTO IT AND HAVE FUN!!!

If you don't love Glup Shitto, don't write about them! If you're not having fun, hit the bricks!

Fanfiction is for HAVING A GOOD TIME and SHARING WITH OTHER FREAKS!!!!!!

Much love!! 💕

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

motherofmemes

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

tumblr discourse after 13 years on this fucking website

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

an incomplete taxonomy of christmas music

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

Most reasonable crash out

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

Here you can see the exact moment his spark broke in half

Here's where you can read this au!

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

"Good Morning, Rose"

My short story for the wlw anthology GLIMM*R!

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

Here's some good Hazbin/Helluva critical videos I've seen (since it's so hard to find good ones on YT)

(Both are by GalXE!)

(Left one is by HezuReviews, right is by Autistic Swag!)

(Both are by Madeline Maye!)

(Both are by Cassidy Whiskey!)

Please go check these people out, all of them are extremely talented. Some of them even shared some insight and clever criticism into this series that I hadn't even thought of! (I especially like the Madeline Mayne ones as they poke into how both HB and HH fail at their queer representation.)

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

op: look on the bright side! at least they think about you a lot?

megatron: that doesn't help nearly as much as you seem to think it does

haunted au

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

JOLLY UUUUUUP!!!!

In all seriousness merry Christmas tumblr!

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

Transformes ONE Spoilers

Sentinel Prime got to cuss in the German Dub, making him more powerful

[the-one-and-only-taffie]

TIL that the reason lead levels in children’s blood have dropped 85% in the past thirty years is because of an unknown scientist who fought car companies to end leaded gasoline. He also removed it from paint, suggested its removal from pipes, and campaigned for the removal of lead solder from cans.

via ift.tt