Headmasters discussion

[Dominic]

Still, I would not want to ignore the newer comics, as bad as I fear then may be getting in the next few months.


Dom
-"Last Stand of the Wreckers" is worth a few threads.

[andersonh1]

I would take threads about one of us watching an old TF show for the first time and everyone else chipping in / complaining over threads about which G1 homage toys we'd like to see ANY DAY.

That said, come on andersonh, next episode!! What, you got kids or something?!

I'm sure we'll watch some episodes this evening.

[andersonh1]

The Four-Million-Year-Old Veil of Mystery
Scorponok finally shows up, though he's in the shadows the whole time. This is a pretty decent episode, showing the hardships the future Headmasters had to endure on the planet Master. Tons of Autobots get slaughtered on Earth and on the other planet, the name of which escapes me. Scorponok very nearly finishes them off, but memories of their harsh life and all they overcame spur them to escape the trap. Switching heads seems to boost their power or something, though they don't explain how.

There are a few grammatical errors in the subtitles this episode, including using an apostrophe for a plural, which always irritates me. And either in this one or the next, a character actually says "damn it" instead of some Transformers euphemism ("scrap" being common), so the subtitlers must have been working late one day and just wanted to get done and go home.

A good episode. I really liked this one.

Terror of the Six Shadows
No, that's not Sixshot in his various modes, colored in shadow. It's six different bots, yeah. Ok, so maybe not so obvious when we haven't seen him transform up to this point, but even so, the robot silhouette is obviously him. And his fellow Decepticons Cyclonus and Scourge apparently don't even know he has six modes, since they're surprised to see him at the end of the episode. All in all, a pretty ineffective attempt to disguise the villain as far as I'm concerned. And was Trypticon destroyed? Galvatron mentions "his precious Decepticon base" being destroyed, but it's not clear if he's referring to Trypticon or not. Even if he's still alive, the Headmasters give him a pounding when he was pretty much invincible before. What's up with that?

We finally get to see the Trainbots combine for the first time (apart from the opening credits of course!). These guys never made it over here, so they're complete blanks as characters to me. I like that they're able to fight Sixshot fairly well, considering how tough he's supposed to be. And like the last episode, a memory from their time on planet Master motivates the Headmasters, in particular Chromedome.

Eh, it's an okay episode. Everyone looks pretty stupid for not recognizing Sixshot though.

[Gomess]

What you've gotta bear in mind is that Japanese cartoons generally place more importance on continuity than American ones. Unless I'm remembering wrong, Ultra Magnus and a couple other Earth-based nobodies are the only ones to have met Sixshot, so to the authors it would've actually made sense that Rodimus and Fortress wouldn't recognise him. More to the point, *no one* has seen him transform, and that's the gimmick here. As I say, I might've missed something, but this is the sort've continuity that we forgave a lack of in the western show, but is a big part of Japanese fiction.

(Presumably the giant robot mode Sixshot should've been coloured differently, that seems to have been a mistake.)

...But didja not laugh at Zarak's intro? I love all the BUILD UP BUILD UP SO MYSTERIOUSSSS and thennn~ he's a tiny little dude stood on a box to make himself as tall as Galvatron. Big lolz.

[andersonh1]

What you've gotta bear in mind is that Japanese cartoons generally place more importance on continuity than American ones. Unless I'm remembering wrong, Ultra Magnus and a couple other Earth-based nobodies are the only ones to have met Sixshot, so to the authors it would've actually made sense that Rodimus and Fortress wouldn't recognise him. More to the point, *no one* has seen him transform, and that's the gimmick here. As I say, I might've missed something, but this is the sort've continuity that we forgave a lack of in the western show, but is a big part of Japanese fiction.

Yeah, no one's seen him change up to this point, but I'm still a little surprised that no other Decepticon (apart from Galvatron apparently) had a clue.

...But didja not laugh at Zarak's intro? I love all the BUILD UP BUILD UP SO MYSTERIOUSSSS and thennn~ he's a tiny little dude stood on a box to make himself as tall as Galvatron. Big lolz.

He's compensating for being a little guy!

[Gomess]

He's compensating for being a little guy!

I love it. When I first watched Headmasters with a bunch of friends they all looked at me when I riffed on that bit 'cos I do the exact same thing. [/short man's disease]

[andersonh1]

Planet Cybertron is in Grave Danger 1 & 2
Hmm, I wonder what the plot of this episode is about? The title isn't giving me any clues...

Okay, so here's where Cybertron bites the dust, as Gomess mentioned a few pages back. I'll give credit to the writers for trying to go for a big epic story here, even if the episodes focus mainly on the Headmasters. There are some major battles between the Autobots and Decepticons on Cybertron itself, Rodimus and Galvatron throw down (though that's a pitiful fight), and at stake are Vector Sigma and Cybertron itself. But the narrow focus on the Headmaster characters makes the episodes feel somewhat run of the mill, and we're treated to more "running through tunnels looking for Vector Sigma" filler scenes. And why in the world is Scorponok still in shadow all the time? What plot function does that serve?

The end of part 2 is actually amusing when it's clearly not supposed to be. Rodimus takes off to find a peaceful planet, Kup and Blurr join him, but boy are they quick to ditch Arcee. Cerebros is left in charge. Galvatron his the core with 10 seconds to spare and is apparently destroyed with Cybertron. They couldn't have come up with a more blatant "write out the old characters" episode if they'd tried. But again, to give credit to the writers, this show doesn't mind shaking up the status quo and doing it in a big way. And if nothing else, Scorponok shows how ruthess he is since he's willing to destroy the home planet of the Transformers so that his side can win the war.

A decent pair of episodes, even if the execution was somewhat lacking. It does make Optimus Prime's unnecessary sacrifice even more pointless though.

[Gomess]

I love how Rodimus just ditches everyone. And they have ZERO actual reason for leaving Arcee behind. "What would Fortress do without a secretary?!" ...And that is exactly what she becomes.

Anyway, next episode has Hardhead singing karaoke, if memory serves.

[Onslaught Six]

And why in the world is Scorponok still in shadow all the time? What plot function does that serve?

Anime Bad Guy Reveal contrivance. Be lucky! We could have Mysterious Honourable Antihero Guy In A Poncho Cloak, or Mysterious Masked Guy Who Is Obviously A Friend Of The Main Characters But They're Too Dumb To See It.

[Gomess]

They should just've revealed Scorponok straight away, since he kind of IS a mask... Not Megazarak's true face, anyway!