With the first season of the Beast Wars cartoon behind us now,
I'm not at all looking forward to the prospect of a second one.
Certainly, the computer-animation remained fantastic throughout; and
certainly, the writing on the series was highly intelligent, with a lot of
thought going into an ongoing story, a mature approach, an internal
scientific consistency, an attempt to link the new series into the old
continuity, and interesting and well-rounded characterization. Pity that
this last point only applied to the Autobots, however. From the very
first pilot episode to the lackluster grand finale, this series has treated
the Decepticons like so much moving scenery, throw-away two-
dimensional villains who engage in "evil" for its own sake without any
rhyme or reason, and provide the occasional problem for the "heroic
good guys" to solve. Every single Decepticon has been painted as an
idiot or a backstabber (or both), since that was the easiest formula to
plug them into, so that no further thought had to be given to character
development for them - so that all the considerable writing talent could
go strictly into showcasing the only real characters in the series, the
Autobots. The Decepticons were very clearly written in such a way
that viewers wouldn't bother to give a damn about them, so that when
they were repeatedly blown to multiple pieces, it was no different than
blasting a stray meteor or an onrushing avalanche. It comes down,
once again, to a lack of respect - and a mind-boggling lack of
realization that any group that really hated each other that much
and worked against everyone else so viciously, would never have been
able to survive.
What was emphasized throughout the series, in the Decepticons,
was an extreme animosity for one another, a total lack of trust, team
spirit, or any sort of affection for their team-mates (barring the pure
ignorance of Scorponok and Inferno's relationship to "Megatron",
where the "loyalties", given to such an unworthy and incompetent
leader, were born of fear and stupidity rather than any true devotion,
and so simply do not count). Everyone was gunning for the top
position, as though there was no other character-type in the whole
species, and each one was willing to doublecross and sell one another
out at the slightest whim to get what they wanted. There was some
mistaken notion among the writers that this created "tension" that
somehow made things "interesting", but the only thing it made for,
was aggravation, lack of realism, and some truly disgusted and
infuriated fans who were not satisfied with such lame excuses for
negligence. Precisely because these BW Decepticons valued power
and conquest so much, they should have been a smoothly-functioning
unit working together to bring their goals into reality - not a group of
petty infighters. I've never truly expected the "designated bad guys" to
be given fair and equal time on these kiddie-shows - but I did not
expect this completely and totally one-sided and dismissive approach
by a team of writers who have proven elsewhere that they can, in fact,
write well when they want to.
Even small touches and glimpses at other facets of the
Decepticons, would have gone a long way to improve the show and
make it something I'd have been pleased to spend time with, rather
than the travesty it turned out to be. Would that there had been, for
instance, some camaraderie among the warriors and scientists as they
coped with living under an incompetent commander; would that there
had been the occasional glimpse of something other than contempt and
jealousy among them. Something as quick and simple as having
Waspinator or Terrorsaur shove the other out of the way of onrushing
artillery would have spoken volumes about their status as friends and
flying partners. Regarding Tarantulas and BlackArachnia, whenever
any hint of affections between them came up, a hasty smokescreen was
thrown out that indicated there was no real feeling there after all, that
they were simply using one another to their own ends. As though the
very notion that there could be the slightest decency among the
"villains" was utterly taboo. Gods forbid any air time should be
"wasted" on showing additional facets to the Decepticons, when it
could be spent on exploring the Autobots further.
What's truly horrific about the whole matter is that the head
writers for the series have been in contact with the fan community
almost since the pilot episode aired. They've shown themselves willing
to interact, provide information, ask questions of those who could fill
them in on background information from the old series, and in general
been amazingly willing to communicate and answer questions. For
this much, I have a measure of respect. Only in the matter of the
Decepticons, did they put on the blindfolds, shove in the earplugs, and
completely and totally refuse to realize what they were perpetrating. A
direct complaint was even made about the nature of the Decepticons
and how some of us were very unhappy with it, written calmly (not by
me, obviously), rationally, and in detail, pointing out very clearly why
the current portrayal wasn't working, and including many suggestions
for improvement. The writer's response cavalierly dismissed each one
of our points as not even worth taking into account, and ended with
what essentially amounted to "It's just a cartoon - get a life." (Now,
do you honestly think that a group of Autobot fans who wrote up a
heartfelt request to bring back Optimus Primal, complete with some
logical ideas on how to do so, would be laughed off with "Get a life?")
Apparently there's about as much respect for Decepticon fans in the
realm of the BW cartoon, as there is for the Decepticons themselves.
Vague excuses at the beginning that "there simply wasn't time to
characterize everyone in the pilot episode" were just that - excuses
(why was it possible in the G1 cartoon, with many more characters?) -
and vague promises that the 'Cons would get their fair share of
attention in time, remained that as well - empty words. When the level
of outrage expressed by a small number of fans finally sickered
through, they tossed together a quick-and-dirty excuse that the
Decepticons were nothing but a bunch of "criminals" anyway, and
that's why they were shown to have no redeeming qualities
whatsoever. The exact words used by one of the writers to describe the
'Cons were "an entire nation of Hitlers." With that designation, they
were free to write them off, and once again concentrate on the real
focus of the cartoon, getting back to the portrayal of complex and
multi-faceted Autobots. Those Autobot-interactions were portrayed
quite skillfully, by the way - lots of bickering that looked like enmity
but turned out to be concealed friendship, everybody on the same side
in the end, etc.; so why was the same respect never accorded to the
Decepticons? It wasn't lack of writing ability, so the only other answer
is lack of caring. Complete, total, utter lack of giving-a-damn when it
came to the 'Cons.
As a result, there were exactly four good episodes out of a series of
26. The first was "Better Mousetrap," agreeable for its absence of
"Megatron", and noteworthy for Waspinator's assertion that he had to
warn his comrades of the Autobots. It was perhaps the only time in the
whole series that one of the Decepticons displayed a genuine, unselfish
concern for his team-mates, even after he'd felt tired, disgusted, and
unappreciated by them earlier in the episode, and it was such a passing
moment that the vast majority of people I talked to later, hadn't even
noticed it. Sad, when the value of a whole episode hinges upon a split-
second line of dialogue. (And did that split-second line of dialogue
take away any air-time from the "true purpose" of the show, to
promote the Autobots? Not one bit. So why couldn't there have been
more of such moments?) Next was "Spider's Game," which almost
allowed BlackArachnia and Tarantulas to care about one another - but
spoiled it in the end by insisting very strongly at the conclusion that it
was all just pretense. "Possession," notable for the presence of
Starscream, was otherwise an entirely mediocre episode, and put me in
mind of the "Starscream's Ghost" episodes from the third season; in a
wasteland of drivel, those episodes were a bright spot, but far from
engendering cheer, they only made it that much more obvious how bad
the rest of the series was, and how much I missed the old characters.
The third season of G1, incidentally, is a very appropriate metaphor
for the BW series. Both were abysmal in the overall sense, both had a
very limited number of episodes that were almost good, and both had
one episode that competed for the bottom-slot of "worst of all time,"
far exceeding even the ordinary episodes in repulsion-value. For third-
season G1, it was "Carnage in C-Minor"; for BW, it was "Lowbrow
Road." Unlike post-Movie G1, however, BW never had its
"Webworld"-equivalent. The closest it got was in "Law of the Jungle",
for its intense storyline and breathtaking animation - but that was very
strongly an Autobot episode, and once again the Decepticons were
discarded like so much background-noise.
How very different from the old series. As hokey as the old show
was at times - as full of plot holes, inconsistencies, and silly
terminology that sometimes barely even approached pseudo-science -
there was still some magic element about it that made it exceptional.
Namely (to me personally) the nature of the Decepticons. Certainly,
the G1 cartoon displayed the usual anti-Decepticon bias, in that there
was always a desperate attempt to paint the 'Cons as the "totally evil
villains" - but other bits and pieces of their natures came through that
proved this simply wasn't the case. Yes, there was a certain level of
infighting and jockeying for position - but that was very limited. There
was also much evidence of the Decepticons' loyalties and friendships
toward one another, their devotion to their cause, and their admiration
for their eminently worthy leader, who in turn had the safety of his
followers in mind even as he planned his conquests. Megatron was a
leader who earned true respect - someone who would never ask his
warriors to risk what he would not, someone who courageously fought
his own battles, someone who experienced both victory and danger
side-by-side with his troops - someone who, though loath to show it
too openly, genuinely cared about his warriors. How many times did
he spare even Starscream, long past the point where Starscream's
battle prowess would have outweighed the liability he posed?
Megatron was a true command figure, a hero to his kind in every sense
of the word. He was a great leader because he had a vision for the
future, a future that included a betterment of life for all Decepticons,
and he had the personal charisma to inspire others to believe that it
could be achieved. His physical power and weaponry was part of it, but
only a part. At least equal was his personal ability to command loyalty
and respect - not due to fear and hatred, but honest-to-gods
admiration.
The BW Pretender to the Name, on the other hand, was a self-
important windbag who cowered in the safety of the base and sent his
"grunts" out to do the dirty work, or primped himself in his hot tub
congratulating himself on how "clever" he was, all the while being
willing to sacrifice his warriors' lives on the slightest whim. He
blundered into idiotic mistakes that he then tried to blame others for,
and mistreated even those who tried their best to please him. Little
wonder that they all hated him (except those too stupid or too beaten-
down to do otherwise). BW "Megatron" was an insult not only to the
real Megatron's name, but to the Tyrannosaur form he took as well.
This abomination actually achieved the all-but-impossible: he replaced
Skyfire at the top of my "most-hated Transformers" list. When a
Decepticon heads that list, you know he's got to be purebred
scum-of-the-galaxy.
In retrospect, I don't think the four good episodes of BW were
worth having sat through the others. Perhaps with the sound turned
down, they'd have been tolerable just for the pretty pictures. Other
than that, I found very little of value in the series. To me, the
Transformer universe is first and foremost the story of the Decepticons
- they are the characters who capture my interest, incite my
affections, and fan my enthusiasm. I truly don't care whether the
Autobots are portrayed as sickeningly noble or actually halfway-
realistic, as long as there are Decepticons I can cheer for and relate to.
And this time around, any affection I developed for some of these
characters, I had to fabricate entirely myself - and it took a good bit of
effort that was not, in the end, worth it. The more I'd talked myself
into liking them, the angrier I became at how shamefully they were
treated.
Regarding the so-called "cliffhanger" at the end of the season, I
couldn't care less whether Primal is truly dead; it would have been
nice, but it wouldn't have been anything more than just nice. All I
really cared about was that some little bit of consideration and
attention be given to both sides, not just one. And that certainly
didn't happen. I can't even muster any interest in how Tarantulas is
going to get back into his own body, or what he and BlackArachnia
might learn about each other in such an intimate association, because
going by the past pattern, the whole issue will either be totally
dismissed, or resolved in an absolutely atrocious way. Remember,
they're not allowed to have any friendly interactions among each other,
now (insert sarcastic smirk here).... When the characters were cared
about so little that they were scripted in cheap clichés and
simpleminded formulas, making it impossible to relate to them - then
what value is there in the series at all? None that I can see.
What a terrible disappointment, when the series could have
been excellent - when the talent was there, but wasn't used. I will
not be watching the second season.
--Raksha the Plumed Serpent
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