Guys, Why Are We Ignoring The Fact That WheelJack Literally Choked/broke Someone's Neck With His Thighs??

Guys, why are we ignoring the fact that WheelJack literally choked/broke someone's neck with his thighs??

My man didn't even hesitate, he just did. The one question I have is how? Like I don't know if Cybertronians (sorry if I misspelled) have muscles or what muscles do they have, but it is hell of a power you must have to do so. And he did it so calmly like it was nothing unusual.

Guys, please help. I was rewatching tfp s2e16 "Hurt" And noticed this.

What's written on his blades? The only letter I figured out is the last one, which is allegedly "T".

I love some neat little details, but I honestly dunno what does it mean. Here's an alphabet I've tried to use to translate.

I can make you cringe in 1...2....3!

My first ever transformers fanart and I'm apparently terrible at it. It was supposed to be Megatron, but he turned out to look like a chewed up dog toy.... (Next to him was supposed to be Starscream but I was busy)

[ID: it's a pencil drawing of the TFP Megatron and half of the TFP Starscream. Above them both there is a sentence "First time drawing them". To the left from Megatron there's a sentence, saying "Way too long. Hands must be lower", with an arrow pointing at an abomination RBT dares to call Lord Megatron.]

So I've finished Transformers: Exodus and, for God's sake, I adore this book. It was really interesting and surprisingly thoughtful, cuz it brought up a lot of hard and heavy themes.

And now I really want to share one of my personal favorite moments of all book and discuss its themes.

But, before I begin I am obligated to warn you about spoilers. If you want to read TF:Exodus absolutely don't read my post. Ok? Good. So, once again, brace yourself for a scene analysis! Also, this is all my opinion, I might be wrong.

Now, the scene I talk about is battle between Sentinel Prime and Megatron. I'll let you read it before I continue on what I love about it.

Now, remember me praising this book for bringing up heavy themes? Yeah, this is an apogee of that statement. Like this one scene makes us question so much and makes us wonder who is right. Yet the best part is that it's no one IMO.

So, the first big question, that came to my mind reading this was who should I root for?

Now, from watching TFP and other Transformers media we all expect Decepticons be bad and every Autobot/bot who supports their cause to be automatically a good character. Yet TF:Exodus absolutely changes the narrative. Sentinel Prime isn't in any capacity a good person. He is the one who proposed and made to life the caste system, the one who made millions upon millions bots suffer just because they could transform into certain thing, the one who gave D-16 the reason to became Megatronus. (Let me clarify something. D-16, Megatronus and Megatron are all the same person, yet I'm inclined using this separation for clearance of speech. D-16 is a slave, Megatronus is a gladiator/revolutioner and Megatron is a tyrant/dictator. Though it isn't really true, since Megatron quickly changed his name, but I feel it'll be easier to comprehend what point of character ideology I'm talking about). Thousands of bots were living their long life in the mines, in the pits of polluted cities just because they were born with a specific transformation. He reaped what all this unfortunate, unnamed bots sow. Sentinel Prime is the person who is responsible for deaths and, even more terrible, lifes millions of bots had. Honestly, I don't remember why he decided that caste system was a good idea, but in grand scheme of things it doesn't matter. Let's be frank, SP had time to change the system, yet never did. Why? Because it directly benefited him. Why change something if it makes your life better at the cost of unnamed, distant slaves that you can ignore?

Yet I can't find myself rooting for Megatron. And this is a question, that was brought up by the book and for which I have no answer.

When the reasonable sacrifice becomes unstoppable massacre?

Now, revolution isn't something that usually ends up with no victims. As Megatronus states nothing was changing while him and Orion discussed the problem. The higher class wouldn't do anything if they were asked nicely, which we can clearly see in the books. So to make themselves heard, gladiators decided to do terrorist attacks, which is while understandable, yet directly contradicting to their own ideology (we'll get to it later). But, when is this enough? This question is indirectly asked by Sentinel Prime. Are the deaths of Bumper and Fastback were necessary? Now, I'm not sure that I, at least for now, possess any means on discussing this kind of question. And this is what I like! It isn't just yes or no, good or bad. We want to hate Sentinel Prime and be on Megatronus' side, but it isn't that easy. Because it's not Megatronus anymore. It isn't this idealistic bot, who only wants freedom for himself and his people. No, Megatronus is long gone. And now there's someone new. Megatron. Now, while I can't discuss necessity of deaths of other persons, since I consider myself unprepared for this kind of talks, I can point out the moment when I think revolution became Megatron's secondary mission.

No, I'm not talking about scene where Orion became Prime, though it is really important. I'm talking about the brief moment when he torn out Bumblebee's voice box.

Was it necessary? Probably yes, since Bee was an enemy's spy. Yet what makes it a very important scene is that in this particular moment, Megatron forgets about his own cause. His ideology was about freedom of speech and choice for people like him. So wouldn't it mean that Decepticons should respect a someone's choice becoming an Autobot? But it never happens. I'm not saying that Megatron should've let BB go with praises and a smooch on the forehead. But when the ideology founder doesn't play by his own rules, why would people following him should? And this is why I love this book and this moment. Guys, I'm not saying I've read much and maybe I just have very low standards, yet this is such a good scene! I never thought I'd say it, but the story about space aliens who fight each other, while smoking intergalactic crack is one of the most realistic stuff I've ever seen! Megatron's idea was brilliant yet the execution and envy destroyed everything good. Megatron was right at first, but when he stopped caring for his own people that's when it all went downhill. And this scene just keeps getting better. Call me slowpoke (cuz this is what I am), but writing this made me realize about what delusion OP talked about in TFP and about what SP was talking about in this moment. Megatron is no revolutionary anymore. He is a tyrant. He long forgot about his cause, the only thing he cares about now is getting back at Optimus. His delusions make him think he's doing the right thing for a good cause, yet he never fully understands that he becomes something he has sworn to destroy. Now he is ignoring his people, sending them to endlessly and pointlessly die on the battlefield or by his own hands just for disobeying his orders. Megatron couldn't care less about the caste system he had already wiped out of existence. The envy, the pain and the "betrayal" got to his head, twisting his mind and even driving him crazy. And people tend to find an excuse for their own wrongdoings, so they can feel better about themselves. Megatronus' idea became Megatron's excuse.

And this is so deep and so realistic. I love how Alex Irvine approached Megatronus' fall and Megatron's rise, our necessity for choosing the lesser evil out of two morally questionable ideologies. And giving us the opportunity to decide for ourselves.

I hope you now understand why I adore this scene so much😉

Grian: Oh no Scar. If you break this thing, Doc WILL kill you.

Foreshadowing a literary device in which-

Okay, now there's a character I have in TFP I wish I'd see more of. And this is my cowboy Autobot Wheeljack. So if I can't see more of him, I'll discuss him. Brace yourself for a Wheeljack/Bulckhead relationship analysis.

I really like this character, but it feels so wrong that he gets no good solid long talk with Bulckhead about their history (at the point of season 2. Haven't seen season 3 and movie yet).

There's 4 plot points that aren't really explored with him and Bulckhead imo.

Firstly, Bulckhead's hard choices that hurt Wheeljack.

Seeing how Wheeljack couldn't let go of Bulcky's abandonment of the Wreckers, I hardly consider that the dialogue between them was pleasant.

"Hey, you don't know Optimus as I do! Being a wrecker meant everything to me, but I left it behind cuz..."

"Because Prime was the real thing blah blah blah"

There's some kind of undisguised pain/anger in a way he says it. And yet they have no conversation about it, even though Wheeljack is clearly hurt. For some reason I feel the kind of betrayal in Jackie's voice and not only because of that particular abandonment (though it's the main reason). The other reason of this pain is a second chance that Bulckhead has lost/ignored waaay back in a first season. Remember how Wheeljack offered Bulkhead to go with him like good ol' times? Call me dumb, but I see it like some kind of a test, last chance given to his friend he hasn't seen in probably centuries. But he failed. He once again choose someone else above him, above wreckers.. And I don't want to antagonise Bulkhead, he might have had the best intentions at heart, but from Wheeljack's perspective it was another proof of the painful truth, which leads me to the second issue. Time's arrow neither stands still not reverses, it merely marches forward.

Secondly, Everything stays, but not actually.

It's an another interesting trait I see in WJ. He desperately tries to hold on the past, the Wreckers. It was kinda confirmed by Bulkhead's own words: "...... Because some bots never change, hah.....". This is also represented in Wheeljack's desire to get his old crew together by seeking his wrecker friends, offering Bulckhead to go with him. Maybe it is also why Wheeljack is so against Ultra Magnus. Now this is where I have a question. Since Transformets: Exodus is canonical to TFP, there's a strange contradiction between these two amazing narrations. TFE says that Wreckers formed under the Ultra Magnus' command after the siege of plateau Hydrax (sorry if I call somethings different names. English isn't my first language and I'm reading the translated version), but in TFP he was sent by OP to rule them for some reason. What should I believe? But anyhow, my analysis is also proven by his inability to go further in some ways. Being a loner and unable to work in a team Prime may be a subconscious repulsion of novelty. He doesn't want to be like Bulckhead back on Cybertron. Which, once again leads us to the second big problem in the Wreckers relationship I wished we'd see them discuss. "Do you even care?"

Thirdly, Bulckhead seemingly carelessness for his fallen camarades.

While Wheeljack was searching through the space for his Wreckers, Bulckhead stayed at Earth with Optimus, not even trying to at least contact some of them. I know it wasn't Bulcky's fault, knowing the situation, but it still might have just be yet another proof how Bulckhead moved on with his life, while Jackie couldn't do it for centuries. The another moment that planted yet another seed of this realization in WJ's head was once again the proposal Bulck has denied. From WJ's perspective it just seemed that some human he [Bulckhead] knew for a few weeks/months meant more than him, than wreckers than the precious past. Which is somehow very depressing. It's way too late for me to come up with interesting transition. "What took you so long, Bulck? Don't tell me ridin' with Prime made you...... Soft"

The last, but not least interesting thing I've noticed is BH's and WJ's different opinions on the commanders.

I think this is the last nail in the coffin of their past. Like I guess in late season two/season three WJ finally realized that no matter how much he'd like to be back to the good old days with Bulckhead, it is impossible. It was centuries, Bulck changed and there was nothing Jackie could do but accept him, like Bulcky and Team Prime (kinda) did.

In the end of this dumpster fire of an analysis of this relationship, I want to summarize all in kind of TLDR way.

Basically all I've meant is it's sad we've never got to see them talk deeply about their problems with each other. It would've been an interesting dynamic of a friend who moved on and the friend who desperately holds on the past.

Okay, it scrapping 4 in the morning where I live. I have an hour of sleep left👍 and sorry for grammar..... I'll go a mimir.