Transformers questions by newbies, and not-so-newbies

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Originally Posted by Verno

In the G1 cartoon Universe, can the Matrix grant life to new Transformers?

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Originally Posted by UltraMarginal

I don't know of a time in the G1 cartoon continuity where the Matrix granted life, however, just because it never happened on screen doesn't mean it couldn't. most of the life creation episodes were before the movie I think...

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Don't recall Rodimus using Matrix being used like it was in the Bay movies - whipping it out and jabbing into a dead Transformer or bringing it near machinery to create life. In Season 3, there were some badly written life-creation episodes; Metroplex being built through hard work; Grimlock building the Technobots from parts within Unicron's head; and then there were fallen Transformers being brought back to life by the Quintessons.

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Originally Posted by Verno

If VS is the only place where a new TF life can be created, why is it not a more heavily guarded place? Surely if you control it, you control the number of troops that can be created and thus over time through sheer weight of numbers you would win the war?

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I guess that's like why didn't Optimus Prime in Season 1 send all his Autobots to crush the Decepticons in one fell swoop, when he had the military advantages of a proper base of operations, fleshling allies, and a 3 or 4 to 1 ratio superiority in numbers :p

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Originally Posted by SuspectimusPrime

I guess that's like why didn't Optimus Prime in Season 1 send all his Autobots to crush the Decepticons in one fell swoop, when he had the military advantages of a proper base of operations, fleshling allies, and a 3 or 4 to 1 ratio superiority in numbers :p

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What do you think the numbers of each force would have been at this stage?

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Originally Posted by Verno

If VS is the only place where a new TF life can be created, why is it not a more heavily guarded place? Surely if you control it, you control the number of troops that can be created and thus over time through sheer weight of numbers you would win the war?

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Because then Hasbro wouldn't have been able to drag this particular toy commercial out for 3 and a bit seasons and 1 movie!;)

Think about it :)

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Originally Posted by Verno

What do you think the numbers of each force would have been at this stage?

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The Ark Autobots was a pretty big force - 15+ full sized transformers? - The Autobot cars + Blaster/Perceptor and not including the minibots. Somebody will correct me on that one :) There was a few episodes where Optimus had the Autobots all lined up outside the base before battle to do group transformations and I always thought that was a overwhelming force :p

As for Megatron's forces, he only had the Seekers (3), Soundwave (1), the Cassettes (4), and Reflector (3) - 5 full sized transformers and 7 half sized. This was before the Constructicons came around which were built by Meg's Decepticons in the G1 Cartoon, and don't recall how they came about in the US Comics.

Consistencies with plot devices in the Gen1 cartoon was almost non-existent. The "bible" they put together was more for the characters (which was usually consistent), and some basic concepts.
The Constructicons' origin is one example of contradiction - they were noted as existing millions of years ago because they were shown to be building Megatron, but in a different episode they were shown to be turned into Decepticons by Megatron, while millions of years later they were built by Megatron on Earth.

The creation of characters on the cartoon was another element of contradiction, even after they introduced the Matrix. Some were scratch-built on Earth (or Unicron) and just come to life, and some were built on Cybertron and given life by Vector Sigma. There actually weren't too many characters brought to life in the cartoon... the majority just appear in an episode as if they were always around.

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In the G1 cartoon Universe, can the Matrix grant life to new Transformers?

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In the comic it was more of a Creation Matrix (later becoming the essence of Primus), while in the cartoon is was more of a Leadership Matrix (holding archived memories/wisdom of previous Primes).
So even though it didn't specifically say anywhere that it couldn't create life in the Cartoon, it's usage in the cartoon suggests it was more like a recording/depository device... so really it absorbed (wisdom), rather than "gave" (life).

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Originally Posted by Verno

In the G1 cartoon Universe, can the Matrix grant life to new Transformers?

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Yes, but only if it's convenient to the plot-of-the-week.:p
Or maybe not. AFAIK the mysterious powers of the MacGuffin Matrix so far have been limited to blowing up Unicron (but only after he's destroyed half of Cybertron), curing Hate Plagues, powering up Hot Rod into Rodimus Prime (and Scourge), acting as a substitute Key to Vector Sigma, and providing some crazy mind-trips through the memories of Autobot Leaders past.
If you wanted a vaguely-canonically-plausible excuse for it being able to grant life, you could use its mystic link to Vector Sigma as giving it sporadic life-granting powers.

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Originally Posted by Verno

The Comics are seemingly rife with the Matrix being able to do this, but I can't find any reference to the Matrix being able to do this in the toon. It seems the only thing that can give new life to a TF is Vector Sigma, as we see in The Key to Vector Sigma parts 1 and 2.

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Yes and no. There are a few TFs (the Dinobots, possibly the Constructicons, the Technobots, Metroplex, Trypticon) who are created without it.
The most plausible (in-universe) explanation for these exceptions is that the need for Vector Sigma in creating TF life is merely a widely-held myth, and that the Autobots and Decepticons have a selective amnesia-esque programming glitch concerning the creation of the Dinobots (and/or are ashamed of them and thus prefer not to mention them). Or else that for some reason city-bots don't need Vector Sigma to be given life, the Dinobots' low intellect and myriad personality problems is due to their being brought online without it, and that the Technobots got some sort of Grimlock=super-genius/made-from-Unicron's remains Get-Out-of-Non-Sentience-Free card.

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Originally Posted by Verno

If VS is the only place where a new TF life can be created, why is it not a more heavily guarded place? Surely if you control it, you control the number of troops that can be created and thus over time through sheer weight of numbers you would win the war?

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This is just more fansplanation, but...
Until the events of The Key to Vector Sigma no-one seemed concerned with Vector Sigma - which kinda makes sense when you consider that Cybertron had been in a civil-war-induced energy shortage for most of the past few million years. Not much point making more warriors that you can't keep functioning. Especially since the Decepticons (i.e. Shockwave and his drones) already more or less had control over Cybertron, making getting to Vector Sigma hard for the Autobots and unnecessary for the Decepticons. After the Decepticons started shipping energon from Earth the energon shortage wasn't such a problem, but they still had control over Cybertron and arguably had bigger fish to fry what with the battles on Earth. Similarly, not only was Vector Sigma heavily guarded, but Alpha Trion had the Key.
For the Autobots to use it to make more soldiers they would have had to 1: make their way to Decepticon-occupied Cybertron, 2: find Alpha Trion, 3: fight their way past both the Decepticon forces on-planet and the Vector Sigma security robots to reach Vector Sigma, all the while lugging around the empty body shells for the new Autobots to be born into.
For the 'cons to use it to army-build, they'd 1: need to create and transport the bodies, 2: need to find Alpha Trion and 'persuade' him to help, and 3: have to fight their way to VS (remember that they didn't know the Key would give them control over the warrior drones beforehand). When you consider that they already held Cybertron, had plenty of soldiers already available on Cybertron, and were slowly plundering Earth's energy (albeit with frequent setbacks) it's kind of a waste of effort.

Cheers lads, I'm enjoying the ideas.

I guess with my writing (and attempts to use Canonical events as much as possible) I try to find a rule that best fits the story 'most of the time'. Recently I've been doing origin stuff, with Primus, Unicron, The One, the 13 etc etc, and the creation of life has been a curly one to say the least. I'm trying to determine a set of rules for my own Universe that don't get contradicted further down the line.

What do you see Cybertron's population as at different points through TF history? IE, the Golden Age, throughout the Great War and so on. What sort of troop numbers would Prime and Megatron have under their command when they reawaken on Earth in 1984 and make contact with Cybertron? In the thousands? Millions? I'd love to hear some thoughts on that.

Does anyone know if MP Soundwave will receive a local release ?
Torn whether to pay $170 on BBTS or wait for local if its coming ?

I'd like to think so!

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Originally Posted by Starscream77

Does anyone know if MP Soundwave will receive a local release ?
Torn whether to pay $170 on BBTS or wait for local if its coming ?

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Originally Posted by gantz

I'd like to think so!

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Nothing has been "Officially" said yet, but I'm willing to bet hardcore that there'll be a localised-Hasbro release down the pipeline; The prospects of repaints of the mold & the various Minions set to be issued, would be a lure far to great for Hasbro not to bite IMO. ;):cool: