(REDUNDANT SPOILER WARNING!!)
While I wasn't the biggest fan of The Headmasters, I was still willing to give the rest of the Takara Trifecta a chance to see if they were, in any way, better. The main problem I had with Headmasters was the lack of a storyline and the characters being absent of any actual personality, which I feel should be the main parts of a series that hooks an audience in to watch.
Oh, and Daniel and Wheelie. Never. Forget. Daniel and Wheelie.
Besides, I have heard some other peoples thoughts on the next series, Choujin Masterforce, on how it was a vast improvement over Headmasters. And having finally seen it all the way through... Yeah, it is. Not just on a character and story perspective, but also on other levels such as action scenes and music. Choujin Masterforce is a massive improvement in every sense of the word, and is one of my favourite instalments in the franchise (that I have seen, at any rate).
And once again, I'll be using the Japanese names and judging the series based on the version I saw in the Complete Takara Collection box set released by Metrodome, as the SHOUT! Factory releases are apparently terrible and it's surprisingly difficult finding other subs of the series that are, otherwise, easily accessible. Also, I refuse to torrent. It just won't be happening. So, if there are any incorrect translations present that I am not aware of, I'm sorry; I'm working with what I got.
Anyway, TIME 4 BACKSTORY!
In the future of... the future, Earth is at peace. That is, until the reemergence of Destrons who have been on the planet since the Stone Age; a trio of Pretenders with monster forms consisting of Blood, Gilmer and Dauros, along with a seemingly endless horde of Seacons. And of course, to counter them are the Cybertron Pretenders who have lived on the planet disguised as humans; lead by Metalhawk and consisting of Diver, Lander and Phoenix. Both sides are now uping their game, as there comes the revelation of the Godmasters, lifeless Transtectors that can harness Chokon Power (or, "Super-Soul power") through a unity with a human wielder. Thus, the race is on for the Cybertrons to recruit people who can use Godmasters to fight on their side to stop the new Destron Emperor of Destruction, Devil Z, from wiping out humanity. Helping both the Cybertrons and Destrons along the way are the Headmaster Juniors, human children who can also use the titular Masterforce to fight alongside the robots in battle; the Cybertrons helped by Shuta Go, Cab and Minerva, and the Destrons recruiting Wilder, Bullhorn and Cancer.
Oh, and the Godmasters, too; made up of Lightfoot, Ranger, Road King, Double Clouder, Grand Maximus, Overlord, Hydra, Buster and Ginrai.
Oh, and Black Zarak and Sixknight. There are a LOT of characters in this show.
The main critique that most fans tend to agree on is that the series has difficulty deciding who the main characters are. The best one could say is that Ginrai is the main character by the end of the series, but it otherwise seemed to juggle between the Pretenders, the Cybertron Headmaster Juniors and the other Godmasters, but they get less significant time than Ginrai does. Some of this might have been due to the fact that Ginrai, for an in-story reason revealed AFTER the events of the series, was designed after Optimus Prime (or Convoy), or it could have been due to the fact that this series was initially conceived as something of a fresh start disconnected from the original series and Headmasters. Nonetheless, there is a form of incoherence of who the main character is supposed to be.
As a consequence, some of the characters, specifically Hydra, Buster, Sixknight, Lightfoot, Ranger, Double Clouder and Road King, don't have much in terms of focus or character development and lose relevance to the story pretty quickly after their debut. I can at least let the Pretenders, both Cybertron and Destron, have a pass, as they have been on Earth longer and are more of mentor figures to the younger, less experienced characters, no too dissimilar to the Spirit Rangers from Kyoryuger. Nonetheless, some of the characters feel like extra support just there to sell toys. I understand that that's the main aim for any Transformers series regardless of quality, but I counter that with the argument that the character should be would encourages viewers to buy the toys, not just a promotion of them.
Heck, there even a few missed opportunities with them, most notably Double Clouder. In reference to his toy and Western counterpart, Double Dealer, Clouder is a Transtector with a neutral missile truck mode, a Destron beast mode and a Cybertron robot mode. As such, he is initially cast as a double agent working for the Destrons so that they can discover the Cybertron's base of operations and destroy it. However, it's over and done with after two episodes and, because the Destrons left him to die, Clouder joins the Cybertrons and is automatically a good guy. The episodes focused on the base attack and it's destruction are some of the best in the series, especially with the ramifications of it's destruction and the effect it has on everyone, but Clouder's sudden shift of allegiance doesn't, especially when he is never punished for what he has done and the hand he had in ruining everything for the Cybertrons, which lessens the impact of the bases destruction.
There could've been more time focused on Clouder and his interactions with the others, slowly showing his shift of allegiance and his guilt for when the base is destroyed, not dissimilar to how the Teen Titans animated series would handle Terra. But instead, due to the lack of filler plots, we gone none of that. Kind of a waste if you ask me.
Thankfully, the characters who DO get focus and development have easily identifiable personalities that I got to like quickly. Ginrai is a nice breathe of fresh air for the commander type, as he isn't entirely fond of being the leader at first, but slowly learns his responsibility of being the leader and how important it is to take those responsibilities. The Cybertron Headmaster Juniors, though initially one of the dumbest ideas in the franchise, prove to be incredibly likeable very quickly. Shuta has an understandable motivation, having lost his father early one in the series; Cab is energetic and straight forward, but never to the point of being a liability; Minerva shows herself as smart and a pacifist, but is still willing to stand up for the others while understanding that not everyone can be a good person.
Even the Destrons have more of a personality than before, as none of them, aside from Black Zarak, Hydra and Buster, are just basic:
I will never tire of that clip.
Giga and Mega, the Godmasters for Overlord, still seek the destruction of the Cybertrons to prove their loyalty to Devil Z, but they otherwise treat their fellow Destrons as some kind of bizarre family unit, mainly due to Mega doting excessively on the Headmaster Juniors as they were they're own children. Wilder and Bullhorn, even through their violent antics, still have a sense of respect for their comrades, and despise other children or people that aren't involved being used hostages or bargaining chips, due to hating any sign of weakness or frailty. This helps elevate the villains to being more than basic mooks standing in for the main villain,
But the most surprising of characters has to be Cancer... Yes. One of my favourite characters in this show is a kid named Cancer. At least you could justify the name as a reference to the Horoscope, as his beast mode is (apparently) a bipedal mutant crab monster.
Regardless, what made this kid appealing to me is how he is actually exposed to the chaos that the Destrons, and by proxy himself, have been spreading. He is a victim of bullying due to being orphaned as an infant, but he was taken in by a martial arts master and spent his years trying to master his techniques as a sign of gratitude to the old man. But a combination of the bullying and his own desires are what lead to him leaving his master and joining the Destrons to advance his skill. But when Minerva shows kindness to him in a time of need, which lay the seeds for his eventual turn on the Destrons when he sees the destruction they spread, especially when his home and few friends at the dojo are threatened by an invasion from Black Zarak. When he learned that his master dies alone and saddened by Cancer's departure, he finally took the chance to try and save people and actually redeem himself for what he has done. The character who I thought would be my least favourite actually ends up being my favourite character this series.
Thankfully, due to the absence of filler plots, more focus is put on the overall threat of Devil Z and his machinations, even if not much is revealed about his past aside from being the creature that powers the Godmasters and their ability to absorb Chokon energy for their fights. Their antics start off small time, due to the Pretenders being more old-school evil, but they are still leading to their goal of humanities destruction. Even with the more outlandish plots of the week, they are still smart in the execution of their goals for those plots. Although, Blood's plan of causing a stampede in African to try and get humans to kill their cattle? Yeah, that one was stupid. Nonetheless, this Destrons are probably some of the best written in the franchise as none of them are just one dimensional or really all that stupid. If only Headmasters or (spoilers) Victory had villains this smart or interesting... yeah, I'm not liking Victory thus far.
The music, even if the theme song once again is slow and disconnected from the themes of the show, is far more exciting and fitting for the scenes that they are used for. One of my personal favourites is probably "We Believe Tomorrow", mainly due to this feeling of both despair and hope that contrast perfectly with the more mellow musical accompaniment that helps to convey the scenes where it is used. Hell, it was first used for the destruction of the Cybertron's base, and it actually left a strong emotional impact with me when seeing it fall apart and the Cybertrons are left without a feeling of hope.
The action, despite its reuse of stock footage and not being the best animated, is always engaging to watch for due to the characters being more entertaining and, get this, VITAL TO THE STORY! One of the complaints that I alluded to in my review for Headmasters was that the action was never engaging due to the absence of any form of character development or personality, feeling more like a lower grade generic super robot anime. While, yes, Masterforce also uses several anime troupes, the use of them do not supersede the story or character development, but instead is accented by such, thus making the final victory in the battle between Ginrai and Devil Z at the Matterhorn all the sweeter and feels earned.
Choujin Masterforce is a far better series than Headmasters. I understand that isn't saying much as Headmasters was more of a corporate cash in than the Prime Wars Trilogy, but it doesn't detract the idea that Masterforce is a really good show. The characters are better defined and likeable, the villains have more complexity to them than previous shows (or even a few modern ones [looking at you, RID '15]), the music fits the series near flawlessly and the story has emotional weight that leaves the viewer satisfied by the end of it. Masterforce really is a series that any Transformers fan should check out for themselves.
Overall rating: 8/10 (really damn good!)
Until next time; this is Callum Lewis, the Media Hood, and you too can use your Masterforce, and TRANSFORM!!
No comments:
Post a Comment