#megatainment

[julie-su]

HOW CN U NOT BE A FAN OF TH MEGAS WHEN HISTORY REPEATING RED N BLUE R RIGHt THERE??

Er.... So this has been sitting in my inbox for a while now, and I've got to say - you were absolutely correct. I had been putting off listening to those two - I can get easily annoyed with music that isn't quite my style. Unfortunately, half of 'Get Equipped' hits that spot for me of pure 'ugh.' -- Nigh entirely on me. If anything, I'm frustrated that I'm like this. ABAB rhymes can really tire me quickly... They get a little 'hey diddle diddle' for me. What's next; did the cat play a fiddle?!

I really like Megatainment from them; it's a four song EP, but I could, and have, listened to it for hours! Wow, how stunning this one is!

For whatever reason, today, I wanted something more, new covers to put in my rotation.

I put on 'History Repeating: Blue', and... WOW! Wow! I'd only heard 'Can't Stop the Top' and 'Don't Mess with Magnet Man', which were . . . Less of my speed . . . But I've come to appreciate them now in the full context of the album. (Don't you love it when that happens? You hate a song, but it's in the album, so you listen to it again, and again, and... Oh, that's pretty good, actually!) -- No, yes, well chuffed with these albums. As ever, both albums close out with an absolute treat -and my god, am I ever a fan of playing with the double-meaning of 'Light' being both Doctor Light, and the concept of 'light' and 'goodness' and perhaps even becoming (morally?) blinded.

And my goodness; those motifs coming in strong! No, you're right.. I absolutely adore these albums - they are right up my street. A lot of thought and love get put into all of these albums (I wish I could get along with Get Equipped...) and it really shines through, especially here. I'm well impressed! I had to stop for a moment because of how much I was loving it.

[julie-su]

I'd have to say that my favourite of all-time is Hello Fascination, by Breathe Carolina - it's a breathtaking album that makes my ears happy. But there's a few that I have in constant rotation.

In constant, constant rotation?!

Last.fm says these are the ones I listen to the most; but there's some that I just want to play once a week, or once a month…

I keep popping this one on at the moment; I uploaded the CD rip onto youtube so it would be easier to pop it on if I was using somebody else's phone -laugh-

One of my favourites to pop on when I'm out galavanting, is Super Super Digi-Punk Split Vol.6

What else.. Forever love for Dizzee Rascal - you have to listen to 'The Fifth' at least once in your life if you're a bassline hog like I am.

And honestly, I was surprised to finally have the ear for The Megas; I respect them, but it wasn't something that I had ever found to be 'my style' - well, I hadn't been listening to the right tracks, because I've been singing tracks from 'Megatainment' and 'Get Equipped' ... Okay, these are pretty cool! I love the subversion in the last track of the credits scroll; making 'Fight, Mega Man! For Everlasting Peace!' take on an almost malicious tone.

I've also been listening to m-flo's albums a lot lately... And all of Knife Party's discography. Hmm!

Dig it;

it bothers me that you often don't really hear about people having a "favorite album" the way they might have a favorite movie or favorite video game

[randompaw90]

big time longpost abt the megas album get equipped under the cut

ill warn everyone in advance i have no structure for this

but to start i know in 'the message from doctor light,' rocks stated to have a "child's face" but ive always interpreted the megas vers of rock to be in his late teens at least (mostly bcs it makes more sense to me and it makes blue like you A LOT less squicky)

but i think 'the message from doctor light' is a good point to jump off of bcs i think its a good setup for the internal conflict that rock goes through during get equipped

light already feels conflicted for what happened in the album "megatainment" due to the reprogramming of rocks brothers, it clearly still lingers with him and is making him feel a strong guilt for having to make rock fight again, which are strongly reflected in lyrics like "but the burning in your heart i did not put there" meaning rock is already feeling hurt about having to do this despite his confident demeanor in the previous track 'i want to be the one.' but it's also likely bcs of the specific "sense of justice" that light mentions that drives him to need to be the one to protect humans.

and this becomes immediately reflected in 'the annihilation of monsteropolis.' the meme has always been that airman is the toughest mm2 robot master after all, so by putting airman first, i find it to be a super interesting move bcs right off the bat, rock is sent after the most imposing of wily's sons this tike around. and airman wants rock to know that, reflected in the fact that he very openly talks down to him whilst revealing his insecurities with lines like "do you know what it's like to built this way?! with only the power to push others away?" this becomes further accented with the lines he leaves rock with. "youve a heavy role to bare, do you think you can carry it?!"

and likely, that's the thing rock is left wondering as he faces off with metalman in 'metal dance.' as silly as metal is, giving rock more of a dance battle than an actual fight, he's probably still wondering if he's really suited for this life. and metalman even plays into his possibly building insecurities with the lyric "let's see which robot's better, let's see who built us best!"

as for 'carved from mighty oak,' i dont really have much of a comment bcs, kinda like 'metal dance,' it's a lot more light hearted. it can be inferred that, out of wily's sons, metalman and woodman are possibly the most laid back of their brothers. that doesnt stop woodman from being just as scheming though, noting "i would, if i could, destroy all that's good." showing that despite woodman's more lighthearted demeanor, he's just as intense as his brothers are in his intentions.

personally, i think 'promise of redemption' is a big turning point of the album's tone. if it wasnt dark before, it's clear that out of his brothers, bubbleman is extremely self loathing due to being taunted by his siblings for his abilities ("they call me a flipper snorkle-geek" or "i realize something as i sit here waiting, (that i'm the one who i'm really hating...)"). but i think its this fight in particular that really effects rock going forward. where he may have been unsure and insecure in the beginning, he sees bubbleman's longing to be more than his ridiculous powers and realizes. wily's sons are hurting just as much as he is and theyre just doing what their father built them for, even if they may or may not want to carry it out.

and immediately this carries into 'man on fire,' which makes it clear that heatman might not be all that well, especially in his intro with "in robot hell i'm not alone. in my mind i hear the voices cry, i've made them a promise that megaman dies!" it can be interpreted metaphorically, sure, but a popular theory with 'man on fire' in particular is that heatman likely was not all together before the events of the album, and the voices he's hearing cry out to him are that of his now deceased brothers. and i think that this, too, becomes very obvious to rock with lines like "this is the breakdown." that, like bubbleman, heatman isnt well. it's becoming more and more obvious to rock that he has to grapple with the fact that the robots he's fighting are just as tormented as he is. and it makes him feel extreme guilt, guilt that won't properly be tackled until the next album history repeating.

part of me thinks that, by the time of 'blue like you,' rock's been so worn down that flashmans offer of "hey megaman, join my side! and let me stop this moment in time!" actually sounds promising to him. though, just like his brothers, flashman's equally as flawed, as revealed by the bits in his monologue with lines like "what megaman and my brother's dont know, is that this flash is just all for show! there's nothing there and there's nothing to me, i'm empty and hollow" and "this flashy suit and this flashy stage, i use only to hide (the fact that) i am lonely and i need somebody, like megaman, at my side" revealing that flash is both very egotistical and vain, he's focused more on his looks and his interest in his enemy than actually carrying out his mission. but in the end, his vanity can only get him so far, as rock takes his weapon in order to move on to his next target, quickman.

in 'the quick and the blue,' i think it's come to a point where quickman actively doubts his abilities, despite being considered one of the strongest of his brothers like airman. rock's already taken out six of his eight brothers, meaning that all that's left is himself and crashman. yet, quickman doesnt back down. "there's too much at stake now [...] is what they say true, does death wear blue?" but with the mention of death wearing blue, he reveals that bit of fear gnawing at him. "would this be the day that he falls?!" and it seems like the others surrounding quickman, possibly his robot subordinates, recognize this by parroting "can he fall?!" and then "[his] circuits slow," indicating rock's used his brother's time stopper against him. yet, in his final moments, despite all his boasting, quickman seems humbled. "i'm not scared anymore! this is the moment that we've been created for! [...] i join the ranks of my brothers that have fallen before! [...] what they say is true, death DOES wear blue! he CAN fall."

and this immediately lands us at my most opinionated robot master song. there's a lot of interpretations of 'programmed to fight,' but i believe that, instead of a standard fight with rock, crashman does not fight him. instead, he offers his help. why? because he cant stand his father for how he was created, but crashman already acknowledges that today will be his end, but he may as well play it out how HE prefers to, and thats by being a hero. "my end has come and i welcome glory, no one will know the truth to this story!" its clear to rock that, like his other brothers, crash is very conflicted, and he wants to make a change ("everything changes. tonight."). he explicitly offers himself up to rock as an aid in his combat, knowing that his weapon will be of use to rock, but wanting to help and do something other than cause chaos for humanity by helping its savior. "to break wily's walls, you will need my power. but to your aid, an unlikely friend, programmed to fight to the very end!" he shows rock that dedication he has to his cause, but he knows the truth, he won't be surviving this fight. so, in the end, he joins in his fight for as long as they can, until they come to an impasse and they can no longer continue, not unless he sacrifices himself. "and so they fought, the clash of metal and grinding gears echoed across the night sky. victory was at hand, but in the end, his will overcame the program." despite being built for battle and destruction, by offering his aid to rock's purpose, he overcomes his programming by being more.

and that's what breaks rock.

theres a skip between wily's fight and to the finale with 'lamentation of a war machine,' in which we immediately see rock break down. yes, he saved humanity, but was it worth it? did he have to hurt the eight of them to do so, when they were just as insecure and hurting as he was? he breaks down to tears, wondering if it was even right to do what he had done, and it makes him question his very purpose. "if ive a heart made of steel, does that mean i cannot feel? remorse for everything ive done, my hands a smoking gun." ive always personally inferred that this was partially a monologue as well as a conversation with dr light that rock is having as he walks his waybhome due to the reiteration of "tell me dr light, why did i fight?!" but light cannot bring himself to respond. ive always pictured him at his desk, slumped over and face in his palms as he, too, is wracked with guilt for what his son has just been through. and when he arrives back at the lab, its then when he drops his helmet as mentioned into the grass. hes stopped talking to light, and is now sitting upon the hill, quietly wondering what more there is for him in life, or if he was just as awful as wilys sons, built to murder. "what purpose am i to fulfill? was i built to kill? [...] how many mist fall before there's peace for all?! tell me was i wrong[...]"

rock is left with this inconsolable feeling of guilt and nihilism for hurting others, and this carries right onto both parts of history repeating, where that guilt is still clinging to rock as he realizes that he's not the only one struggling with these fears.