#nova reads exRiD

[novafire-is-thinking]

Things I love about this:

Whirl’s presence can be felt. He holds a room captive with his chaotic intensity.

Despite his reputation, Brainstorm is sensitive to the emotional “atmosphere” of a place.

Ratchet is the mom friend who knows right away which kid is missing. lol

[quetzalpapalotl]

headcanon reaction game: "divine mandate of heaven" style Primacy

😐 Neutral. I don’t love it, but I don’t hate it either.

Okay, so rather than neutral this is something that varies depending on continuity.

Like, in TFP (and others) this is not a headcanon, this is simply a part of the worldbuilding and sure, I'll go along with it for the sake of being told a story. Unicron is right fucking there, I'll buy Primus.

For Sunbow I really do prefer the Quintesson origin backstory, no matter how much spin-off media retcons it. This requires no Primus, so no divine to mandate. In this case, I rather headcanon the Matrix which holds "the wisdom of the primes" as some repository computer that holds an imprint of all the Primes that have bonded with it, it connects to the mind of possible holders and uses that collective wisdom to judge if they have the qualities for a good leader. Kinda like Psycho-pass but you know, less dystopian.

But if I'm reading a G1-inspired thing and we're going by a "divine right of Primes as ordained by Primus" thing, it's fine. I'll go along.

However, if we're talking IDW1 then I absolutely loathe it. It not only goes against the canon text, but also against the themes and basically everything I like about this continuity. There's nothing special about being Prime, this was one of the things both Barber and Robert's works agreed on. Literally all of exRID/OP was about how no one should have that kind of power. It ruins the OP ending, it ruins Optimus' character, it ruins Rodimus' character, it ruins the "good enough" speech. Rung was A Guy, he has special powers but he is not divine, he is A Guy. The 13 Primes, with whom this whole idea started, sucked. The Legacy of the Primes cannot be salvaged. The Primacy as we know it today started with Nova Prime, who majorly sucked, who was also a true matrix bearer. Given that last point I don't think we should pretend that bauble is really a judge of some vague quality of nobility, instead of just something that reacts to whether you yourself think you're worthy.

[lord-squiggletits]

I think another thing that annoys me about how prevalent it is for people to read MTMTE/LL and nothing else, is the fact that JRO's depiction of Cybertronian-organic relationships is slanted so heavily in favor of Cybertronians portraying organic aliens as tyrannical racists killing colonies for no reason (Galactic Council, the Black Block Consortia) that love torturing Cybertronians because they hate them so much and don't see them as sentient (that dude who was selling Cybertronian torture dolls to alien races).

And like, something that happens as a result of people only reading MTMTE/LL is that they get this idea in their head that it's Cybertronians who are oppressed by the rest of the galaxy. And an unfortunate.... take that I see as a result of this ends up with stuff like Decepticon/Megatron apologists trying to frame technoist colonialism as basically Cybertronians trying to strike back against being unfairly persecuted and being seen as lesser by alien species? They don't always explicitly say it as such, but I've seen a lot of people try to downplay the whole technoism and colonialism thing by framing it in context to organic racism and how both sides are equally bad or something like that.

Which is not fucking true because if you actually were to read exRID and OP, you would know that there are multiple Cybertronian colonies throughout the galaxy that were created by razing previously occupied organics planets, that Nova Prime (one of the original 13 Primes and the first Prime to rule a united Cybertron) wanted to conquer the entire galaxy which led to the creation of cold construction in the first place, and that the reason organic species hate Cybertronians so much is because Cybertronians were the first ones to go out and start conquering other planets millions of years ago.

It's even more infuriating because you don't even need to read other comics besides JRO's to know this! Tailgate and Cyclonus were from Nova Prime's time and the whole "yeah during those times we liked going out on a fun journey to kill organics for fun hahaha" is brought up at least a couple times in the series.

[daisyachain]

Attempt to figure out the IDW political timelines

>10 million years ago - Reign of Primes

A whole bunch of bullshit happens involving Onyx Prime, tribes, Prima, etc. that I don’t know and don’t care about because by that point I was only reading exRiD for the Arcee/Aileron 

7-10 million years ago - Reign of Nova Prime

Cybertron is unified into a single state. Nova begins a series of explorations, culminating in his forming the Primal Vanguard and starting the Cold Construction program with the help of Tyrest. At some point, the Functionist religion becomes the governing belief system, heavily influencing government policy. The official stance of Functionism is that Cybertronians with beast and/or extremely common, weak alt-modes are non-sentient beings. These Cybertronians are treated as droids or animals. Cybertronians with common or manual alt-modes are discriminated against.

The Cold Construction program creates an underclass of citizens intended to be soldiers in Nova’s imperialist conquest of neighbouring worlds. These Cybertronians are also heavily marginalized, though allowed more rights than beast or disposable alt-modes due to their usefulness to the government.

The creation of Cold Constructed Cybertronians starts an energon shortage that heavily impacts Cybertronian politics for millions of years, especially when Cybertronian imperialism slows.

Cybertron in this era is a heavily classist, imperialist society beholden to the ruling forces of the Prime, the Senate, and the Functionist Council.

4(?)-7 million years ago - Reign of Nominus Prime

Nominus is notably less aggressive than Nova, leading to the Senate and the Functionist Council gaining influence in Cybertron. Both bodies are generally aligned, their goal being to maintain and further the class structure on Cybertron, but they disagree as to the status of CC Cybertronians. Dissent begins to spread, spurred on by the anonymous writings of a CC miner, Megatron of Tarn and possibly the more diluted power structure of the upper classes. The Decepticon movement arises, some advocating for reform but most for revolution. 

The Senate is largely classist and corrupt, but there are still Senators such as Shockwave, Sherma, and Momus who sympathize with anti-establishment movements and push for reform. The overall population is in support of governmental reform, though many oppose the drastic measures proposed by the Decepticons. Cybertron maintains the appearance of a constitutional monarchy, though its governing bodies are highly corrupt and the Functionist Council is politically powerful. Senator Shockwave is scouting candidates for Primehood, including Zeta and Orion Pax.

Megatron gains widespread fame when police officer Orion Pax breaks into the Senate chamber and quotes his writings. Megatron of Tarn is then exiled to Messatine. The Decepticon movement continues to grow, but its populist roots and lack of organization lead some to fear that it will only create a new form of oppression.

Eventually, the Senate seizes power from Nominus by having him assassinated, plotting to discredit the Decepticon movement and lobotomize its members. The plot fails, but Senate security agent Sentinel is still installed as Prime. Orion Pax goes on the run and forms a group of dissident Autobots who oppose the corrupt establishment but believe that reform is possible without revolution.

4(?) million years ago - Reign of Sentinel Prime

Sentinel begins a brutal crackdown on all dissent, transferring power from the Senate back to the Prime. Physical conflict between Pax’s dissident Autobots, the military and Senate security, and the Decepticons breaks out in the form of labour riots and battles over control of important territory. Megatron escapes Messatine after killing a guard during a labour riot and becomes a pit fighter, building what will become the core of Decepticon command. Sentinel Prime eventually challenges Megatron to a fight, and is killed.

4(?) million years ago - Reign of Zeta Prime

Senator Shockwave’s former protege Zeta (who was secretly modified by Shockwave to have Matrix affinity) becomes Prime. Initially, Pax’s dissidents and the establishment Autobot forces are united under Zeta. Zeta passes several important laws, including one securing the rights of disposable class Cybertronians, after years of advocacy by Dominus Ambus. Zeta continues to reform Cybertronian society at such a pace that it satisfies Pax and his dissidents. 

However, Zeta slowly introduces more and more authoritarian and anti-dissident policies in the name of security. Decepticons are forced to register, public gatherings are all but shut down, and the secret New Institute lobotomizes anyone seen to be a threat to the regime. Zeta encourages violence against political prisoners, eventually starting an all-out war against dissidents. 

After Orion Pax discovers the extent of Zeta’s warmongering, he and his allies join forces with Megatron and his Decepticons in order to take down Zeta’s forces. Megatron then attempts to kill Orion Pax, sparking the war between the Decepticons and more or less the rest of Cybertron.

Note: the increasing military conflict between the Decepticons and various other forces is likely what Rewind refers to as “The Uprising.”

4(?) million years ago - Reign of Optimus Prime, start of the Cybertronian war

Orion Pax finds and joins with the Matrix in order to survive the attempt on his life.

The Decepticons conquer five Cybertronian cities, likely spurring what Rewind refers to as “The Exodus.” Millions of Cybertronians flee into space to avoid the conflict. Those that remain are quickly sorted into either the Autobots, who are led by Optimus Prime and seek to curtail Megatron’s imperialism. 

Megatron quickly turns his sights outward from Cybertron to the galaxy, beginning a campaign of Decepticon imperialism that marks the key ideological conflict in the war from this point on. The Decepticon view is that the energon shortage was a key factor in the maintenance of the Cybertronian class system, meaning that equality among Cybertronians must be backed up by an ample energon supply. Decepticons view organic species as inferior to Cybertronians--securing a stable energon supply for Cybertron takes priority over the saving lives of organic species. The Decepticons develop a 6-phase plan for annexing planets, starting with infiltration and ending with the elimination of all organic life. 

The Autobots stand in opposition to the Decepticons, attempting to stop their colonization of planets but often wreaking havoc in the process. The Galactic Council, an organic-run diplomatic alliance, blacklists the Cybertronian species. As the Decepticons continue their colonization and the Autobots race to contain and push back the Decepticons, the size of the Cybertronian war grows to such great proportions that both Optimus and Megatron both control their armies from pods where they are exposed to billions of data points from battles across half a galaxy. Both armies are controlled by an extensive, decentralized command structure. This is likely what Rewind refers to as “The Remote Age.”

Throughout the war, both the Autobots and the Decepticons create hundreds if not thousands of cold-constructed made-to-order soldiers, often with inferior designs or health problems, to fight in the war.

??? years ago - Simanzi Massacre

The Decepticons instigate a battle that ends up wiping out half of all fighting Cybertronians. This is likely a part of what Rewind refers to as “The Cataclysm.” Fighting dies down somewhat after this event.

???-200 years ago - ???

This era of the war is ill-documented. It is likely that both sides required time to rebuild after Simanzi. 

0-200 years ago - Earth Campaign

The Decepticons make Earth, a watery planet inhabited by small organics, their next target. The Autobots attempt to stop the destruction of Earth by the Decepticons, but both sides come into conflict with humans. The Decepticons come close to victory several times, in what may be what Rewind called “The Surge”. However, due to the unforeseen chaos caused by the return of Jhiaxus from the Dead Universe, the Autobots get the upper hand, some weird stuff happens, and Vector Sigma recreates Cybertron. The non-combatants that fled during The Exodus return, called by Vector Sigma, and the Autobots try to secure a temporary peace amid protests by neutrals and Decepticons. Optimus Prime chooses to leave Cybertron, and a very fragile alliance is formed by Bumblebee, Metalhawk, and Starscream.

[novafire-is-thinking]

“Of all the worlds our war touched, only Earth dared touch us back.”

The very beautiful, very broken sanctity of Cybertronian-human relations in a single line.

[novafire-is-thinking]

“We want to be on your side.”

This scene is meant to be funny, but I see something more that provides insight into Prowl’s character.

The Constructicons Know

There are two things that stand out to me: Hook’s choice of words, and the nature of Prowl’s reaction.

Seeing as “your side” can easily be misunderstood as referring to the Autobot side, Hook could have said something more obvious, like, “Hey. We want to hang with you, Prowl.”

But Hook didn’t do that. He chose the phrase, “We want to be on your side.”

Why?

Well, Hook and the rest of the Constructicons were inside Prowl’s head as much as he was in theirs. They didn’t just know his thoughts. They had access to Prowl’s deepest desires.

And what was it that Prowl said to Arcee in Issue #1?

“I learned that nobody is on my side.”

Yes, Prowl wants peace. He wants order.

But just as much, he wants to know that someone will have his back—that there will be someone competent to fall back on when the world is going up in flames.

In spite of all his scheming and pushing people away, Prowl desperately wants to know that there is someone he can trust to do what needs to be done to work toward his ideal: Lasting peace.

When the Constructicons were in his head, they saw that. These five “vile” Decepticons understood Prowl better than any Autobot ever did.

And that scares the hell out of Prowl.

How NOT to accept a compliment

He knows the implications of what the Constructicons are saying. They’re basically telling him that they want what he wants. They’re also telling him, “We’ve seen what others consider to be the worst of you, and we think you’re awesome—not in spite of it, but BECAUSE of it.”

These Decepticons want to help him bring about his ideal, and this goes against all the preconceived ideas Prowl has about Decepticons.

But notice how Prowl stops himself from telling them that their admiration is crazy. It’s obvious that the Constructicons are more likely to listen to Prowl than anyone else, so why tell ‘Bee to answer for him?

Personally, I think he’s torn between agreeing with the Constructicons and telling them to get lost. Prowl wholeheartedly believes the way he thinks is great, but if he tells that to them in this moment, that would mean he’s allowing them into his life in some way, which he doesn’t want.

However, there’s a part of him that can’t tell the Constructicons their admiration is crazy, because this is all he’s ever wanted—to know that someone sees things his way and is willing to go along with his methods.

So, while he’s trying to sort out all the conflicting information and feelings, Prowl outsources the question to someone who does think his way of doing things can be…problematic at times. This way, he’s not technically saying no to something he’s always wanted, and he’s avoiding encouraging the Constructicons.

It’s the only way he knows how to override his internal conflict.

[novafire-is-thinking]

Did I mention how much I love these three nerds? xD

[novafire-is-thinking]

Jaws vs. The Overgrown Space Lizard

[novafire-is-thinking]

Thundercracker, I love you for this.

[novafire-is-thinking]

Just Soundwave looking pretty ✨

[novafire-is-thinking]

“…some are more equal than others.”

I think this is commonly overlooked by the fandom.

No matter how much the Decepticons go on about how their cause is a fight for equality, it’s never 100% true.

Much of the fandom seems to put the Decepticon Cause on a pedestal, assuming it was originally built on a primarily selfless, egalitarian ideological ideal.

However, I don’t think that’s true at all.

And guess what? That’s okay. A cause doesn’t have to be established on a perfect ideology to be a good cause, and to expect such a thing is unrealistic.

[novafire-is-thinking]

Prowl: *insults the Constructicons*

The Constructicons:

[novafire-is-thinking]

Megatron has reasons for his actions? Fine—

But he hasn’t got justification.

A very important distinction.

[novafire-is-thinking]

I never realized how strong Shockwave was 👁️👁️

Like-

[novafire-is-thinking]

Prowl was that kid who cleaned up after himself and everyone else in school.

Change my mind.

[novafire-is-thinking]

He sit